


One of a Kind

by anitariquelmeok



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Never Been Kissed (1999) Fusion, Back to School, F/M, Modern Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2019-11-02
Packaged: 2020-10-14 23:50:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20609402
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anitariquelmeok/pseuds/anitariquelmeok
Summary: Never Been Kissed J/B AU.Beta-ed by legittreeandmoon and jenny-vip12(Thank you guys)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, here's the first chapter of this AU. I'm not a native English speaker, so please forgive me for the many, MANY, grammar and spelling mistakes that I've made. I hope you enjoy it ♥

Brienne walked into the building of the King's Landing Post, the most popular newspaper publisher in the city. The employees referred to it as The Post.

"Theater?…" said a young copy assistant as Brienne walked to her office.

"Standard American calls for ‘er.’ Standard British is ‘re.’ So go for ‘er,’ unless you're a pompous American, then go for British," interrupted Brienne. She was in a hurry to get to her office.

"No, we were supposed to go to the theater last night, remember?" Said the young copy assistant instead.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I totally forgot! You think maybe next week we can go?" Brienne asked. The young assistant agreed and went back to do her job. Brienne went to her assistant's ,  Loras Tyrell’s desk, which was right next to the door to her office. He was speaking loudly on the phone, probably to his last date.

"Renly, do you think I looked fat?" he said over the phone. "I can't believe it, you hesitated," he said with a grin. 

"I'm sorry. Loras, do I have any messages?" she asked, a little awkward. He rolled his eyes and gave her a blue piece of paper. She went to her office and opened the curtains, then took her laptop and opened it. She stared at the dark screen for a moment until she was interrupted by Sansa.

"Guess who I did it with last night," said Sansa, while sitting on a chair in front of Brienne's desk.

"Catriel, from op-ed," said Brienne, without hesitation.

"Damn! How did you know?!" 

"You told me yesterday that you had a date with him last night and you were totally going to fuck him," answered Brienne while waiting for her laptop to turn on. At that moment, Sandor, the chief editor, and Brienne's boss appeared in her office. 

"Tarth, I need five of these by three." Sandor tossed a pile of papers on her desk and then looked at Sansa, "So… Sansa… You and Catriel from op-ed."

"Catriel."

"Oh, really?" 

"You need me to send you the memo with the rules of our company, which explicitly states that dating among co-workers is not allowed?" asked Sandor, irritated.

"Technically, they're not dating, just fucking," said Brienne. Sandor sighed.

Sansa was livid. "So, what does this mean? You don't get any, so we are not supposed to get any either?" she stood and went out of the office. Sandor looked at Brienne; he was clearly annoyed.

"How many times have I fired her?" he asked, trying to keep himself calm.

"Six or seven?" guessed Brienne.

"Twelve!" came Sansa's shout from the hallway.

"Sandor, have you read the list of ideas that I left on your desk?" asked Brienne with hope in her eyes.

"Yes, the one talking about AID's was good. I gave it to Calahan."

"Oh, yeah, Calahan, he's good…" she said, a little disappointed.

"Tarth, we've been through this. You're an excellent copy editor, but you don't have what it takes to be a reporter. Reporters get in there, where the bombs are falling. They grab the bull by the balls," said Sandor. He was tired of Brienne, always insisting on becoming a reporter.

"You think I can't grab a bull by its balls?" asked Brienne, clearly outraged.

"Brienne," he said, trying to make her understand, "you don't want the life of a reporter. It's a total mess, and you are all about order, lists, control."

"I can be out of control." Brienne tried to convince him.

"So, you say?" Asked Sandor, now smiling. He disarranged all the things that were on her desk. He stood up and got out of the office. Brienne started to organize her desk again. "I need the papers I gave you by three Brienne, don't forget that!"

* * *

"Brie, maybe… Oh my god, I can't believe I'm saying this. Maybe Sandor is right," said Sansa during lunch. "Also, it won't kill you to go out, meet someone, and have some fun." 

Ygritte, another co-worker, arrived with her food and sat with them. "She has a point," Said Ygritte.

"You know, Catriel has this friend in editing… what was his name again? Oh, right… Tormund. Maybe we could all go out on a double date," she said, a little bit over-excited. "I know he has a crush on you."

"Giantsbane? I don't like him," Brienne said. She was growing tired of Sansa trying to set her up with someone.

"You kidding me?" asked Sansa. "When was the last time you had a real date?"

"I'm concentrating on my career right now, and besides, San, it'll be a little complicated for me to go out on a date with someone. I'm just not any men's type. I'm too tall. I'm not pretty… I just know that… the right man won't come for me." Sansa opened her mouth, but Brienne interrupted her. "Besides, if the right man is out there, I don't wanna go kissing a bunch of guys to get to him."

"Yeah, but you know what?" asked Ygritte. "Kissing those guys can be an enjoyable diversion."

"Agreed," said Sansa.

"When I finally get kissed,"  _ which is never _ , she wanted to say, "I know it'll be him."

"Wait, if you have never kissed a guy, then we have bigger problems than what we thought," Ygritte said, overreacting. 

"I've kissed guys," lied Brienne. "I just… didn't feel that thing…"  _ because he doesn't exist. _

"That  _ thing _ ?" asked Sansa.

"That thing, when you kiss someone and everything around you just become a blur, and you can only focus on you and that person… And then you realize that that's the only person you want to kiss for the rest of your life," Brienne explained, hating herself for that. "And you wanna laugh and cry at the same time because you're as happy as you can be, but you're also scared that that feeling would go away…"

Sansa had tears in her eyes. "Who would have guessed you're such a romantic?" She wiped the tears of her eyes. "Brie, the right guy is out there, waiting for you. I know it."

"Yeah, me too," added Ygritte. Brienne was happy to have such good friends, but also was a little sad; she knew what she looked like, and she knew that men didn't look at her, not the same way they looked at her friends. Every time some guy had talked to her was to mock her, or to have a chance to ask Sansa or Ygritte out. She had made peace with that a long time ago, and she didn't want to hope for her Prince Charming to come and rescue her, she knew that her Prince Charming was only in her dreams.


	2. Chapter 2

The following morning, Davos Seaworth, the chief of The Post, called for a meeting.

“Let’s begin our meeting!” said Davos loudly. He was a good man, but he could be scary when he wanted, so all the people in the room stopped talking at once. “Let me start by saying I was very impressed by that piece that Jonas did on Ancient Weapons,” he said, speaking to everybody. “But, since the Trib did a piece on the same subject…” he looked directly at Jonas. “You’re fired.”

“What?!” asked a very shocked Jonas.

“You’re fired, out. Clear your cubicle and leave this building at once.” Poor Jonas left the room, cursing silently. “Okay, for the rest of you that still work here, let’s celebrate by doing another undercover feature.”

Brienne was half paying attention to Davos and half paying attention to Sansa, who was silently talking with Catriel.

“So, you know that the inspiration for my stories come from my own experience. So, last night, I was sitting at the table with my children, and my eldest started to choke. He happens to be allergic to nuts. I didn’t know that. Then I realized I don’t even know my children. How many parents don’t know their children? So it hit me. ‘My semester in high school,’” he said, then he looked at Brienne. “You… what’s your name?” he asked her.

Brienne almost choked. “Bri-Brienne Tarth, sir,” she answered.

“Tarth, you enroll Friday, good luck. The meeting is over,” he said and left the room without sparing a glance to the other people in there.

* * *

“Oh lord, oh lord, oh lord. I can’t believe it,” said Brienne once she was in her office, Sansa was with her. “It’s really happening. My first undercover feature, by Brienne Tarth.”

“Brie, I think you should turn it down,” said Sansa. She was concerned.

“Why? You don’t think I can do it?” Brienne’s face was getting red. 

“No, no. I know you can do it. But it’s a lot of pressure for your first story. This is huge. You see what Davos just did to Jonas. And you remember high school? Not our best time,” Sansa explained. Sandor entered the office.

“I can talk to Davos and take you out of this, Brienne,” he said. He, too, was concerned about her. 

“You guys really don’t think I can do this.” Brienne was starting to freak out.

“That’s not what we are saying, sugar,” said Sansa, her voice was a little low.

“When you wanted to date that Spanish teacher, who helped you with all the verbs and nouns?” asked Brienne. She hated doing that. Brienne felt like she was saying she did that just because she wanted something back instead of doing it to help her friends. “And you, Sandor, when you wanted to learn how to use a sword, who helped you search for a good professor and went with you to the first class?”

“You did,” said Sandor.

“You know how to sword fight?” whispered Sansa. Sandor nodded. “Impressive.”

“Guys, this is my chance. Please, help me.”

“Okay, Tarth. I’ll have your back. Just don’t disappoint me.”

“Thank you, Sandor, thank you, thank you, thank you.” She hugged him. It wasn’t common for her to hug people; she always felt too large to do that, but Sandor was taller than her, so he was an exception.

“Okay, then… what do we start with?” asked Sansa as soon as Sandor left the room.

* * *

Brienne then went to the petrol station where her brother, Galladon, worked.

“You want to take Carol?” asked Galladon. 

“Please, it’s just for a couple of months,” begged Brienne.

“I don’t know Brie,” said her brother. Brienne knew he was very fond of his car. He even named it, for god’s sake. “Why don’t you use your own car?”

“Because I need something cheap,” she said without thinking. At her brother’s stare, she immediately added, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just that my car is a little too expensive to be driven by a teenager.”

Galladon rolled his eyes. “You can have her,” he said and gave her the keys. “Explain to me again, what is it exactly that you have to do?”

“Pretend I’m a high school student for a semester to write something about teens.”

“So you have to go to high school again?” asked Galladon. He wasn’t entirely sure about this idea. “Don’t you remember about high school, little sister?”

“Brienne the Beauty,” whispered Brienne. She hated that name and hated the guy that gave it to her.

“How I wanted to kill that guy Hyle for that,” said Galladon. Brienne had gotten pale. “Brie, are you okay?”

“No, I don’t feel very well. Give me the bathroom key,” Brienne said.

* * *

_ Brienne was walking in the corridor of the school. With her books and papers in her hand, she walked towards Hyle Hunt. She was in love with that guy for as long as she could remember. She knew he hadn’t attended to algebra, so she had taken some notes to give them to him. _

_ “Hyle…” she said shyly. “I took some notes for you because you didn’t come to class.”  _

_ Hyle watched her, his eyes full of disgust and cruelty. “Back off, Brienne the Beauty.” He said as he walked away, leaving Brienne standing there, awkward and humiliated. _

* * *

Brienne and Sansa were in Brienne’s room. Sansa had brought an incredible amount of make-up with her and some clothes that would make Brienne look like she was seventeen again. 

“There’s only one way to make a twenty-three-year-old lady look like she’s seventeen, and that’s make-up,” Sansa insisted when Brienne asked her if all of that was really necessary. 

Once Sansa was done with her, she let her watch herself in the mirror. She certainly looked younger. And the blue t-shirt with the jeans looked alright on her. 

“Are you ready for your first day at school?” asked Sansa.

“I’m ready for the first day of my future as a reporter,” answered Brienne.

* * *

Brienne arrived late to her first class. It was Spanish. 

“I’m sorry I’m late,” said Brienne as she sat in her desk.

“You must be la  _ nueva estudiante _ … Yo soy la  _ profesora _ Melisandre,” greeted the teacher. “What’s your name, dear?” 

“I’m Brienne Tarth,” said Brienne, shyly. She heard some girls who sat behind her saying: “Is that a girl?” 

“Oh my god, she is.” 

“She is as ugly as she can be.”

“Arianne, Missandei, Daenerys, do me a favor and callense,” said  Melisandre. “I’m sorry Brienne, _pero nadie_ can be late to my _clase_.” She grabbed a huge Mexican hat from behind her desk. “You’ll have to wear it _por diez minutos_.”

The whole class was laughing at her. Brienne heard one of the girls saying, “I thought she couldn’t be uglier, I guess I was wrong.” Brienne felt her face growing redder and redder. Suddenly a boy walked into the room. He reminded Brienne of Hyle.

“Oberyn, you know  _ que no puedes llegar _ late to my  _ clase _ ,” said the teacher. Oberyn just shrugged, as if he didn’t care. He took the hat from Brienne’s head, smiled, not unkindly, at her and put it on his own head. He then went to his seat.

* * *

Her next class was Literature. Brienne arrived first to the classroom. She sat on a free desk and saw how the girls that had made fun of her earlier were coming to her. 

“We sit here,” said a very blonde girl.

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t know that the seats were assigned,” said Brienne, and she stood.

“They’re not,” said the very blonde girl, as she sat where Brienne was sitting before. Brienne rolled her eyes and went to a free desk. Next to her, there was a petite girl. 

“Hi… you must be Brienne,” said the girl. “I’m Margaery.” She smiled at her. Brienne appreciated it.

“Hi…” said Brienne.

“Don’t trust those bitches,” Margaery told Brienne. “The blonde one is Daenerys, she is the queen bee, the one sitting at her right is Arianne. And the one sitting at Daenerys’s left is Missandei. They are not very good people.” Brienne nodded, she already realized that. She felt like she was living her years at high school again, and she didn’t like it. “Here, we can share the book,” said Margaery, as she put it in the middle of the desk. The teacher walked into the room, and when Brienne saw him, she thought she had never seen a man as handsome as him. He was tall, and muscular, had blonde hair and beard. His eyes were as green as they can be.  _ This amount of beauty in one single person can’t be legal _ , thought Brienne.

“Good morning, everyone,” said the teacher. He left his things on his desk and turned around, meeting Brienne’s stare. “Oh… I don’t think we have met. I’m Jaime… Lannister,” he introduced himself. “The school has this thing about students calling me Jaime.” He smiled at her, his eyes never leaving hers. Brienne’s mind went blank. “What’s your name?”

“I-I’m Brienne Tarth,” said Brienne. “I’m sure the school would be okay with you calling me that.” Jaime’s smile went wider. He shook his head.

“So… Shakespeare,” he said. “Here’s an example of Shakespearean pastoral comedy.” He underlined the word ‘pastoral’ on the blackboard. “Does anyone know what that means?” A girl raised her hand. “Yes?”

“That’s what you do with milk.” 

“Close, but no… That’s pasteurize. Anyone else?” Brienne raised her hand. “Yes, Brienne.”

“‘Pastoral’ means set in the country, originally seen in the Eclogues of Virgil. It’s from the Latin ‘pascere’, ‘to graze.’”

Some guy sitting in the back of the classroom shouted, “Beast!”

“Theon, out,” said Jaime. The guy took his things and got out of the classroom. Jaime went closer to Brienne, his eyes not leaving her face. She felt uncomfortable under the questioning stare of Jaime. “Are you sure you’re seventeen?”

Brienne’s face went red. “O-of course I’m seventeen.”  _ Did I just blow up my cover on the first day?  _ Jaime stared at her a little longer, but eventually, he started to speak again. That was close.

* * *

Finally, her first day at school was over. She walked out of the school while speaking to Galladon on her phone.

“Don’t worry, Gall. I swear I’m taking good care of Carol.” She walked towards where she had parked the car, just that it wasn’t there. “Oh, fuck.”

“‘ _ Oh, fuck?’ What happened? _ ” asked Galladon. Brienne could imagine him sweating.

“Nothing, I’ll call you later.” Brienne hung up the phone.

“They do it to all the new kids,” said Margaery. She was walking behind Brienne and approached her as she noticed what, or where, Brienne was staring at.

“Who’re ‘they’?” 

“Oberyn Martell and their stupid friends,” Margaery explained. “They hide it. Wait a few hours before start looking for it…. In the meantime… Do you wanna go to Winterfell’s to eat something?”

“That would be nice.”

They walked together to Winterfell’s. It was a beautiful place that sells drinks and light snacks, their smoothies and coffee were considered as the best in the area. Margaery ordered for both herself and Brienne, getting a cup of coffee and a slice of chocolate for the new ‘student’ while she herself ordered a banana smoothie and a slice of apple pie.

“What do you wanna be when you grow up?” asked Brienne to strike a conversation.

“A lawyer, like my dad. Or an architect like my mother. Maybe a doctor, or a history teacher… actually, I don’t know yet. What about you?”

“A journalist,” said Brienne, without hesitation. Her phone started to ring. It was Sandor. “I’m sorry, I have to take it, it’s my dad.”

“Sure, go.”

Brienne went outside Winterfell’s and answered her phone.

“Sandor, what’s up?” 

“ _ How’s everything going? _ ” he asked her.

“So far, so good.” 

“ _ Have you got any ideas for the piece? _ ”

“Not yet. But I’ll send them to you as soon as I get something.”

“ _ Okay. If you want to be a real reporter, you have to remember what sells: sex scandals, drugs, bribery, broken hearts. Send me your notes as soon as possible _ .”

“Okay… bye,” Brienne went back inside. “Sorry, my dad gets a little overprotective sometimes,” she apologized.

“Mine too, don’t worry.” Margaery took her phone and checked the hour. “Hey, maybe we can go to search for your car now.”

* * *

They found the car in the middle of the football field.

“They love to disconnect the batteries too,” said Margaery as she opened the hood of the car and connected the battery. “There you go.”

“Thanks.” Brienne was starting to like this girl.

“Hey, I was wondering… How good are you at calculus?”

“I’m good.”

“Do you wanna join the Denominators? We do all kinds of stuff together, we hang out, we watch movies, and we go to this place that plays very good jazz… But the most important thing is that we can offer you some kind of protection from the bunch of jerks…”

“That would be lovely… thank you.” 


	3. Chapter 3

A couple of weeks went by, and Brienne spent most of them with Margaery and her friends. She joined the Dominators, and they were all surprised to find out that she was pretty good at science and math. She was doing well in all her classes, but of course, her favorite class was Literature, and her favorite teacher was, of course, Jaime. She had developed a crush on him. She knew she couldn’t do shit about it, after all, she was supposed to be a seventeen-year-old girl, and he was her teacher and a thirty-year-old man. Also, she knew the way she looked. There was no way a man as handsome as Jaime Lannister would lay eyes on her, even if he knew she was actually twenty-three. Although, that didn’t keep her from daydreaming about an - impossible - future with him. She paid attention to everything he said, and she found everything that came out of his mouth the most exciting thing in the world. She did notice the way Jaime looked at her every time she read what she had written for her homework. It was interest mixed with amazement, pride, and something else she couldn’t figure out. Brienne enjoyed watching him in the eye everything while she read, she loved his eyes. They were the greenest eyes she’d ever seen. They were gentle eyes, and every time he spoke about anything he found interesting, they shined. 

She also enjoyed spending time with Margaery. She was very nice to her. Sometimes, she wished she had her when she was in high school, not having to lie to her and actually being the same age; also Brienne believed that Marge and Sansa would have gotten along pretty well.  _ Everything would have been so much different _ , she thought.

That night Margaery they had gone to dinner at Burger King. Margaery was driving Brienne home. They were singing along to Cardi B when they stopped in front of The Hound. They both heard laughs, shouts, deafening music, and the sound of beer cans hitting the ground.

“What is this place?” asked Brienne.

“The Hound…” said Margaery. “It’s where kids hang out, drink some alcohol, smoke some weed, and make a mess.” Brienne looked at her. She was tense, her gaze stuck to her front.  _ She sounds like she wants to be there _ , Brienne thought, but she didn’t say anything.

Brienne looked out of the window and saw Oberyn Martell approaching them. He knocked on Brienne’s window.

“What the fuck are you two doing here?” he asked. His breath smelled like beer and vodka.  _ He’s gonna throw up if he keeps mixing drinks _ , Brienne thought.

“As far as I know the street is still a public place,” said Margaery. She sounded pissed.

“As far as I know I don’t fucking care, get the hell out,” he answered.

Whatever.” Margaery drove away from that place.

* * *

“Tarth, I’m going to kill you,” said Sandor on Monday afternoon. Sandor had called her earlier that day to tell her to go there as soon as possible. He sounded angry.

“What happened?” asked her. Sandor gave her a newspaper and pointed one single article. ‘ _ The Hound, the place where teenagers hang out nowadays.’ _ “What the hell is that?”

“That’s the same fucking question I’m asking myself Brienne. You are attending that fucking school so you can have that kind of premises… You have to befriend these girls. They attend your school.”

“They don’t like me. They made my first days miserable.”

“I don’t fucking care if they like you or not. You’re gonna be besties with them, and you’re gonna find something extra juicy to write about. And you better do it quickly. You’ve spent a month doing absolutely nothing. Now get the hell out of my fucking office.” 

* * *

As soon as Brienne arrived at her home, she threw herself over the couch. She had become anxious about this whole thing.  _ Maybe Sansa and Sandor were right all this time; perhaps I shouldn’t have accepted the job, maybe I’m not reporter material,  _ she thought. She felt tears in her eyes blurring her vision. She sank her face on a cushion and started to cry. That’s how Galladon found her twenty minutes later.

“Hey, Brie, what’s wrong little sis?” He walked towards her, and once he was next to her, he knelt beside her and stroked her head.

“I’m not reporter material,” she sobbed. 

“What are you talking about, Brie?” 

“Look.” She handed him the newspaper and pointed to the article talking about The Hound. “I was supposed to write something like this, but… anyway, Sandor told me I have to befriend those three girls. They attend school with me, and they are mean to me. I’m Brienne the Beauty all over again.”

“You’re not Brienne the Beauty again,” he said to her, very serious. “All you have to do is to find some popular kid that likes you… that’s how you’ll become popular.” 

“Not even one single popular kid likes me, Gal. They call me Brienne the Beast.” She said. She was used to be called names. What hurt her the most was that she felt she was living her high school experience all over again. “Even if the most popular kid likes me, all they’re going to see is the way I look.”

“Brie, you’re much more than the way you look. You know that, right?” Galladon hugged his sister. He hated every single person that had ever mocked his little sister just because she was not conventionally attractive. He hated that people wouldn’t bother to look beyond her exterior, to get to know the real Brienne. She was kind and lovely and loyal. She was the smartest person in the entire world. She was a funny girl. She was as brave as hell. She is simply the best person in the whole world; she could be easily mistaken for a fucking angel. “I’ll see what I can do to help you, Brie. You’re my little sister, and I’ll be by your side no matter what. Now… say it.”

“Say what?” Brienne asked.

“Say that you’re not Brienne the Beauty anymore. Say you’re not Brienne the Beast. Say you’re Brienne Tarth, the best reporter of King’s Landing.”

“I’m not Brienne the Beauty… nor Brienne the Beast,” she said quietly. “I’m Brienne Tarth, the best reporter of King’s Landing.”

“Say it louder.” 

“I’m not Brienne the Beauty nor Brienne the Beast! I AM BRIENNE TARTH, THE BEST REPORTER OF KING’S LANDING.”

“Yeah, say it, girl!” cheered her brother.

She stood up. “I AM  **NOT** BRIENNE THE BEAUTY  **NOR** BRIENNE THE BEAST! I AM BRIENNE TARTH, THE BEST REPORTER OF KING’S LANDING!”

* * *

The following morning, Brienne went to school with raised spirits. She felt somehow empowered; she felt like she could take any bullshit any of the popular kids throw to her. She parked Carol near the school entrance.

“Baby girl!” she heard a familiar voice saying. She turned around and saw Bronn calling her. He was in a van, wearing his headphones, as always. Brienne walked towards him. 

“What the hell are you doing here, Bronn?” she whispered.

“Sandor sent me to watch you. Get into the van; I have to give you a cam, a mic, and nano headphones." Brienne did as she was told. The last thing she wanted to happen was all those kids talking about how she was talking to an older man before school. "This is the cam, Brie." Bronn showed her a blue flower pin. It was beautiful. "You have to wear this from now on. Then... This is the mic, put it in your bra or something. And finally, the nanos. Wear them so I can communicate with you in case those kids do anything to you." Brienne put the nanos in her ear and Bronn tasted the signal, she heard him from the tiny headphones.

Brienne didn't understand why Bronn was trying to protect her. They have never been friends, they barely talked to each other. Bronn saw the confusion in her eyes, so he explained. "Sansa overheard your little talk with Sandor yesterday, and as soon as you left the office she told him he was a jerk, that he didn't know how bad high school was for you, so he told me to look after you... also asked me to help you find something to write about." Brienne nodded, she felt like Sandor had sent a babysitter to babysit her, although she was grateful, she felt treated like a baby.  _ Nevermind _ , she thought,  _ this could be useful. _

* * *

Her first class of the day was literature. Two full hours in a classroom with Jaime, that was pure heaven. 

"Good morning, everyone." Jaime entered the classroom. He put down his things on his desk. “So… essays… Martell, you’re first.” Brienne noticed that his voice was hostile, and his eyes were dark. They only brightened up a little when he briefly glared at her. Oberyn’s presentation was brief and boring. They had to read Pride and Prejudice and then write an essay about it. Brienne rolled her eyes, that book was one of her favorites, and it pissed her off the lack of interested that he had put on his essay. Why don’t kids like this? It is amazing, Brienne thought. She was a little frustrated. She really didn’t put that much effort into her homework because, although she was very capable of doing a remarkable job, she really didn't want to stand out and attract any suspicion to her. 

“Okay,” said Jaime as soon as Oberyn stopped talking. “Margaery, please?” His voice was softer and kinder when he spoke to Margaery.  _ Maybe he doesn’t like Oberyn _ , Brienne thought. After a few kids, Jaime looked at Brienne. “Brienne?” She noticed a glimpse of a smile on his mouth when he spoke her name.  _ This man is gonna be the death of me _ , she thought.

She stood up and gave her presentation. “Pride and Prejudice is one of the most important and well-known novels by Jane Austen. In it, she talks about many important points of the society of her time, such as pride, prejudice, social status, family, and marriage. The last three are undoubtedly the main focus of the time then. Mr. Darcy is the character that impersonates the feeling of pride. He comes from a very respectable family, and his role in the story is to keep the name of the family honored in his social circle. As the eldest male heir, he is responsible for the well-being of his whole family, and because of this, he is very haughty in his judgments. He is very straightforward in his moral principles, and he thinks that the differences among class exist not only for economical power but also for ways upbringing people.” She caught Jaime’s eyes as she spoke and flushed when she noticed the admiration shining in them that was directed towards her. After all, she was presenting her essay without reading what she had written down on her paper. She had memorized - and held dear - what she had written. “On the other hand, Elizabeth’s prejudice is based on her vanity and superficial judgments of Darcy. She’s proud of her quick perceptions.” She talked for about fifteen minutes, keeping her eyes on Jaime’s. What on Earth was going on in his mind as she spoke, Brienne didn’t know, but she kinda liked the way he looked at her as if she was the most fascinating thing in the entire classroom.  _ Stop being ridiculous _ , she thought,  _ he’s your teacher, and he probably finds your essay fascinating, not you. _

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the office...

“See the way he looks at her,” Sansa told Sandor. They were watching a live transmission of what Brienne was doing at school. 

“And that is…?,” asked Sandor.

“He looks at her as if she is a goddess. He looks at her as if he would take a bullet for her. And probably would ‘ _ jump in front of the train for her.’ _ ” Sansa sang that last part and laughed as Sandor rolled his eyes at her Bruno Mars reference. “As if… as if he loved her.” She remained silent for a few moments, still staring at the screen. “Have you ever felt that way? In love?” She looked right to his eyes.

“I did, once. She broke my heart, and I swear to myself I’d never fall in love again.” He told her. “Now, please leave.”

“You know? Would you like to have lunch with me today?”

* * *

The bell rang, indicating the end of the class. Brienne and Margaery grabbed their things. 

“Tonight the guys and I are going to Sam’s. There will be movies and food, you wanna come?” Margaery asked her as they walked in the corridor. They passed by a guy who was announcing that he and his band were going to be playing at some bar that night, and Brienne heard Oberyn and his friends they should go.

“Um… sure,” she said, not paying too much attention.

“Great. What are you going to do now?” she asked.

“I have the next hour free, so I’ll probably go to the library and do some research for Literature’s homework,” she said.

“Oh, great. See you after Math, then.” Margaery said as she walked to her class.

Brienne went to the library, as she said she would. She took the books she thought she’d need, sat on a chair and started to read. She was so into her reading that she didn’t notice the man who sat right in front of her.

“Is it interesting?” he asked her. Brienne looked up from her book and saw that it was Jaime.

“Uhm… yes. But I’ve already read Cortazar before,” she said.

“So you not only are into English literature but also into Argentinian literature.”

“Is it so hard to believe?” she asked.

“For any other seventeen-year-old girl? Maybe. For you? Not at all,” he said with a tiny smile. Brienne didn’t answer, she was lost in his eyes, in his smile.  _ It should be illegal to be that handsome _ , she thought. “Anyway, I was wondering… Do you want me to give you extra homework? Maybe something that is truly a challenge for you, so you don’t get bored in my classes.”

“I don’t get bored in your classes,” she told him without thinking. “I enjoy them. But if you want to give me some extra homework, I’d be happy.” 

“Very well, then.” He took out some photocopies from his bag and gave them to her. “Take as much time as you need, but something is telling me that you’ll have them by next week.” He smiled at her once more and left the library. 

“ _ Stop drooling all over your teacher _ .” She heard a voice in her ear: Bronn’s voice.

“What the… I’m not drooling all over him,” she mumbled, hoping no one would notice her.

“ _ Yes, you are. But I don’t blame you, he’s hot. _ ” He laughed in her ear. “ _ Once this shit is all over, if he’s not that angry that you lied to him, maybe you could fuck him. _ ”

“Stop it, he’s too hot to be attracted to someone like me.”

“ _ Maybe you’re right. But I saw the way he looks at you. _ ”

“Stop it. Have you heard the guy promoting his band?”

“ _ Yes, and I think you should go. The popular kids are going, and you are supposed to befriend them. _ ”

“What should I wear?” 

“ _ Ask Sansa, she’ll know. _ ”

* * *

The music was loud. Brienne recognized the kid from school on the stage playing the drums. A guy in the entrance put a stamp in her hand, “RE-SOL.” She went to the bar and asked for a virgin daiquiri. After a moment, the guy behind the bar handed her the glass with the daiquiri and a straw. She started to drink it. 

“Blue looks good on you, Brie.” Brienne turned around, with the glass in one hand and the straw between her lips. It was Jaime “This was the last place I thought I’ll find you.” Brienne only managed to smile. Jaime smiled back at her.

“The bathroom was hideous,” said a feminine voice from behind Jaime. The owner of that voice was a beautiful lady, tall and blonde, she had green eyes, as Jaime’s, though hers were much colder. Brienne felt that she wasn’t talking about the bathroom, as she noticed that she mumbled something Brienne couldn’t hear. “Baby, who is this?” She checked Brienne out with only one gaze, with a grimace of disgust on her face.

“Cers, this is Brienne, one of my students… Brie, this is Cersei,” he introduced them.

“The girlfriend,” Cersei added.

“Nice to meet you.” Those words tasted bitter in her mouth.

“I wish I could say the same. Jaime, we were leaving?” she told her boyfriend. “We have to organize your moving. He’s coming to live with me in Highgarden.”

“You’re moving?” Brienne asked Jaime, she suddenly felt sad.

“Did I speak in Chinese?” asked Cersei.

“There’s no need to be rude, Cersei,” Jaime told his girlfriend.

“Don’t worry, I’m used to that. Have a nice night, Jaime, Cersei.” Brienne left them alone, she was starting to get angry. Someone grabbed her by the arm, it was Jaime. This time he was alone. 

“I’m sorry about her. Really. I don’t know why she treated you that way.” He looked at her with those green eyes of him and her brain melted.

“I said everything was all right, don’t worry. Go with her, she looked very excited about organizing your moving.” She gave him a sad smile, and he let her go. She went to where Oberyn and the other kids were.

“Hi guys,” she said.

“What are you doing here, beast?” asked Arianne disdainfully.

“Yeah, leave us, beast,” said Missandei. Brienne felt awkward, and so she immediately left.

“ _ Don’t let them treat you like that Brie _ ,” she heard Sansa said through the headphones. Brienne didn’t answer. She started wandering through the entire place until she saw a group of kids sitting in some sofas. 

“Excuse me, can I sit there?” she asked one of them.

“Yeah, sure.” said the kid. Brienne sat next to him. “I’m Bran, and those are Meera and Jojen.”

“Thanks.” She said.

“Rough day?” asked Meera.

“Kinda.” Answered Brienne.

“We have something that maybe will cheer you up,” said Meera, handing her a piece of brownie. “It’s a special brownie, you know? We made it. It has vitamin T, vitamin H, and vitamin C.” 

“ _ Brie, don’t eat that, _ ” said Bronn, but Brienne just ignored him, and gave the brownie a big bite. “ _ Shit, Brienne I told you not to _ .”

She finished the brownie in about five minutes. After a few more minutes, she felt her head dizzy, and her hands weren’t her hands anymore, and she felt as light as a feather. She realized that her thoughts started to wander, all her fears and inhibitions were so far away and shallow at the same time. Every single bad thing people had told about her in her entire life now seemed stupid and worthless to think about, they even made her wanna laugh. She felt like laughing to those moments in her life that once made her feel worthless. She felt free from all those bad moments of her life. She felt a huge peace go through her entire body, and she loved that sensation. All the lights became brighter, and all her surroundings were dark. The music wasn’t loud anymore. She watched Bran’s face and suddenly felt the necessity of laughing. She felt like her laugh wasn’t coming from her but from somebody else. She hadn’t laughed like that in a long, long time. 

The band had ended its performance a while ago, and now a DJ was playing popular hits. When she heard Bebe Rexha’s “I’m a Mess” - one of her favorite current hits - Brienne started to sing along, louder and louder. She stood, went on stage, and began to dance. She no longer felt all the insecurities that haunted her daily, and with a strange sense of confidence, she grabbed a microphone and started singing. She had quite a good voice.

“I'm a mess, I'm a loser, I'm a hater, I'm a user,” she sang. Some of the people who were there started to laugh, as others began to cheer her. “I'm a mess for your love, it ain't new,” she kept dancing and singing. Brienne hadn’t had such a good time since… since forever, actually.

She saw Sansa and Bronn standing in the bar, watching her both worried and amused. As soon as the song ended, Brienne got off the stage and walked towards them.

“Have any fun?” asked Sansa.

“Yeah… Can you take me home? I’m not feeling great right now.”

* * *

Brienne opened the fridge, she was starving. She found the leftovers that Galladon had left her there. She heated them in the microwave and started eating. When she was over, she put the dishes in the sink and sat at the table, where she fell asleep.

The following morning, Galladon woke her up.

“Brie… You’re late for school.” 

Brienne watched the time on her cellphone.”Fuck, fuck, fuck.” She grabbed her bag and ran to the car as fast as she could.

* * *

Brienne entered the school and saw everyone staring and laughing at her.  _ What the fuck is going on? _ She thought. She started to remember her first experience at high school as tears began to drop from her eyes. She followed her first instinct, which was to run to the bathroom and locked herself in one of the cubicles. 

* * *

_ Brienne was in her front door, wearing a beautiful blue dress that she and Sansa had bought the day before. Hyle Hunt had asked her to go to Prom together. She almost felt like she could touch the sky with her hands. Sansa had helped her to get dressed, to do something with her hair and had applied some make-up on her face. She felt beautiful at the time. _

_ So, there was she, waiting for Hyle Hunt to come and pick her up. She saw a limo on the road, and Hyle Hunt had half her body out of the sunroof. Brienne smiled at him, her heart was beating fast, happiness filling her entire body. But that happiness disappeared when Ellaria Sand came out of the window and kissed Hyle. _

_ “You really thought I was taking Brienne the Beauty to prom?” he shouted and then he threw some rotten tomatoes to her, one of them hitting her right in her left cheek. She heard Hyle and Ellaria laughing hard at her. She started to cry and ran to the back of her house before her father could see her like that. _

* * *

Once she calmed herself down, she went out to wash the tears from her cheeks. She was as red as she has ever been. 

“ _ Brienne, watch yourself in the mirror _ .” She heard Bronn telling her through the headphones. She did as she was told, and found that the word “LOSER” was stamped on her front.  _ Stupid stamp on my fucking hand, _ she thought, as she cleaned it from her hands and her front.

She got out of the bathroom and slowly walked to Jaime’s classroom. She was watching her feet as she walked, that’s why she didn’t see the door opening, which ended hitting her in her face.

“Oh, Brie… I’m so sorry.” Galladon told her sister. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she told him. Then she finally fully realized his presence. “Gal, what the hell are you doing here?”

“I came to help. I just registered. Check this out,” he showed her a fake ID. “I’ll join the baseball team, and I can help you.”

Brienne panicked. “Gal, I don’t think this is a good idea. I can get discovered. My whole career is pending on this.”

“Don’t worry, sis. I swear, I can help you to be popular.”

Brienne nodded, she was glad to have such a good big brother. Galladon left her alone as Margaery approached them.

“Brie… what happened to you last night? We were waiting for you, I got worried,” Margaery asked.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I must have forgotten,” she told her.

“Maybe you should forget about sitting with us today, then,” she told her as she walked away, the slight anger in her voice made Brienne’s heart sank.

* * *

Brienne was actually impressed that Galladon became popular right on his first day. He had beaten some guy up at the cafeteria over eating a very suspicious col salad.  _ Maybe this plan of his would work _ , she thought. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it!! Comments and kudos are always welcomed!!
> 
> (I took the essay from here http://www.letras.ufrj.br/veralima/veralima_2004/6_lit_ingl3/lit_ingl3_lei/week11_essays/e2.htm )


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jaime's POV
> 
> Thanks for the comments and the kudos, they are always welcomed ♥
> 
> If you have any suggestion, please let me know

It was like any other morning. Jaime woke up on his bed, alone as always. He had spent most of his evening arguing with Cersei over the phone, as usual. He took a quick shower and made himself a coffee. He drove to school and parked in the same spot as always. He walked to his classroom, greeting his students. The first thing he noticed when he turned around was the large girl sitting next to Margaery, most precisely the eyes of the girl. It took him a moment to take his eyes from hers so he could see her entirely. The girl had swollen uneven lips, and her nose seemed like it had been broken at least twice. Her skin was covered in freckles. He could say she was as tall as him, if not even taller, and her body lacked any feminine curves. Yes, she wasn’t pretty, but somehow he didn’t find her ugly either, not with those sapphire eyes shining in her face as two lanterns. He looked into those eyes for a moment, the pure, deep blue of them could only belong to the purest of souls.

“Oh… I don’t think we have met. I’m Jaime… Lannister.” He said a little clumsily. “The school has this thing about students calling me Jaime.” He tried to joke. He smiled at her, not being able to stop staring at her eyes. "What's your name?" He asked her.

"I-I'm Brienne Tarth," she said. "But I'm sure the school will be okay with you calling me that." He smile went wider. What was with this girl that makes him smile like a fool in the middle of his class? He shook his head in an attempt to clear his mind so he could continue with his class.

“So... Shakespeare,” he said. “Here’s an example of Shakespearean pastoral comedy.” He underlined the word pastoral in the blackboard and underlined it. “Does anyone know what that means?” A girl named Pia raised her hand. “Yes?” 

“That’s what you do with milk.”

"Close, but no... That’s pasteurize. Anyone else?” He saw Brienne raising her hand shyly. “Yes, Brienne.”

“‘Pastoral’ means set in the country, originally seen in the Eclogues of Virgil. It’s from the Latin ‘Pascere’, ‘to graze.’” Jaime was impressed. Usually, his students didn’t know the answer to that question. 

“Beast!” Theon Grayjoy shouted. _ Is he talking about Brienne? _ He asked himself. He’d never tolerated that kind of behavior in his classroom.

“Theon, out,” Jaime told him. Theon did as he was told. Jaime got closer to Brienne and stared at her for a moment. “Are you sure you’re seventeen?” He joked. Brienne blushed a lot.

“O-of course I’m seventeen.” She seemed nervous, but he didn’t give it much importance. _ This is going to be interesting _, he thought.

For the rest of the day, the only thing he saw every time he closed his eyes were hers, staring at him, blue, soft, filled with fascination and curiosity. _ What’s with this girl? _

* * *

When he was back at his apartment, he started to correct the essays his student’s had given him that day. He found it tedious, the kids always copy each other essays, he didn’t blame them, he had done it when he was at school too, what he found tedious and frustrating was the fact that they didn’t even try to make them seem different. The last three essays he had corrected were utterly equal to the one Samwell Tarly, one of his best students, had given him. He wrote at the end of each paper, “Good job at copying Sam’s essay.”

His phone rang, it was his brother Tyrion.

“_ How was school today, big brother? _ ” Was Tyrion’s greeting. “ _ Let me guess, long, nothing new, the kids still don’t give a fuck about literature _,” he said, trying to imitate his brother's voice.

“For once, you’re wrong,” said 

“_ Oh, really? _ ” Tyrion said, “ _ how come? _”

“I have this new student who actually cares about literature, she had the answer for every single question I asked.”

“_ Tell me, is she hot _?” 

“Tyrion, she’s _ seventeen _.”

“_ Is she hot_?” 

“I’m not answering that.”

“_ Killjoy _ .” Tyrion remained silent for a moment, “_are __you still moving to Highgarden with Cersei? _” He asked.

“You know I am.”

“_ Shit, I was hoping that you finally see reason and break up with the Supreme Bitch _.”

“Sorry to disappoint you, little brother, but we love each other, believe it or not. I’m not breaking up with her.”

“_ You know that’s not true, you don’t love her, and she certainly doesn’t love you. You two are just familiar with each other, and your relationship has been over for almost a year now. You moving to Highgarden with her will just end in disaster. Trust me on this one, anytime soon you’ll meet a woman, or a man, that’ll rock your world, and you won’t be able to live without that person… _ ” Jaime had never heard such 'romantic' words come out of Tyrion’s mouth, “ _ or maybe you should try at least more than just one pussy in your entire life. _” And so much for romanticism. Jaime laughed.

“Tyr, I have to go, work calls. Talk to you later.”

“_ Bye, and remember, try more than just one pussy _,” he laughed and hung up. That conversation with his brother wasn’t entirely new, what was new and surprising was the fact that when Tyrion talked about that person who’d rock his world, the first thing that came to Jaime’s mind was Brienne.

* * *

Brienne had quickly become Jaime’s favorite student. And maybe she had become something more to Jaime than just some other student. He realized after a few days that he kept staring at her even if she wasn’t the one speaking, he found himself drowning in her deep blue eyes. When he was back at home, all he could do was to think about Brienne. _ Shit, this is wrong, this is so wrong, _ was all he could think about.

He found some relief when she read out loud what she had written for every class since those were the only moments when he was allowed to stare at her without being weird or looking like a creep. _ For God’s sake, Lannister, she’s seventeen years old. What’s wrong with you? _ He thought.

He hated that Oberyn, Daenerys, Arianne, and Missandei mocked Brienne, and every time he saw them doing it he made sure to give them some extra assignments or he just told them to leave the classroom and go to the principal’s office.

* * *

He found her by chance in the library. She was reading a book that he recognized as a translated version of _ Rayuela _, and she didn’t notice when he sat right in front of her.

“Is it interesting?” he asked her. She looked up from the book and gave him a nervous smile.

“Uhm… yes. But I’ve already read Cortazar before.” She said shyly. _ She won’t stop surprising me, will she? _He thought.

“So you not only are into English literature but also Argentinian literature.”

“Is it so hard to believe?” She asked. He saw how she blushed a little.

“For any other seventeen-year-old girl? Maybe. For you? Not at all.” He said, smiling. She didn’t answer, so he kept talking, “anyway, I was wondering… Do you want me to give you extra homework? Maybe something that is truly a challenge for you, so you don’t get bored in my classes.” He said. 

“I don’t get bored in your classes,” she reassured him quickly. It warmed his heart. “I enjoy them. But if you want to give me some extra homework, I’d be happy.”

“Very well, then,” he pulled out some photocopies out of his bag and gave them to her. “Take as much time as you need, but something is telling me that you’ll have them by next week.” He stood up and smiled at her before leaving the library.

* * *

“What’s wrong?” Tyrion asked Jaime. They had met that Saturday evening in a bar and Jaime was already on his fourth shot. “You only ask me to meet to get drunk when something is wrong.”

Jaime sighed. He hated that Tyrion was right. “I- There’s this student…”

“The one you told me before… Brienne?” He asked.

“How is it that you always remember everything.”

“You might be a teacher, but I am still the smartest Lannister,” Tyrion joked. Jaime smiled at him.

“You are… And yes, Brienne.” He took another shot.

“What’s wrong with her?” Tyrion asked, drinking from his glass of scotch.

“I can’t get her out of my head.” He confessed and took another shot. That night was about getting drunk. “She’s the only thing I can think about. And suddenly it feels wrong to be moving to Highgarden with Cersei… Suddenly Cersei feels wrong.” He took another shot. He wasn’t even near drunk yet.

“And what’s wrong with that?”

“First of all, Brienne is seventeen years old, Tyrion. And second, I’m supposed to be in love with Cersei. I mean, I’ve been with her since as long as I can remember. We are meant to be… And then this girl showed up and turned my world upside down… and suddenly she seems to be the only one that matters, suddenly she takes control over me, and it’s not like she’s flirting with me or something…”

“Stop the Cersei bullshit.” Tyrion was sick of her. “You two are not meant to be. She is a bitch, Jaime, and you’re a good person. And about this teen… Okay, I know it’s not good for you to have fallen for a student, but apparently, you have. There’s so much you can do, or you wait until she’s legal and out of high school and tell her how you feel, or you just tell her now…”

“I won’t tell her anything, never. It’s wrong. We shouldn’t even be having this conversation.”

“Are you breaking up with Cersei?” Tyrion asked.

“No. Yes. I don’t know.” Jaime answered and took two shots. _ Shit, what is with Brienne Tarth that makes me lose my fucking mind… _he thought. “I just wanna get drunk right now.” 

“Well, that I can help with,” Tyrion said. He asked for a _ Séptimo Regimiento, _ and the guy behind the bar made it right away. Once it was ready, he gave it to Tyrion. “Thanks,” he said to the guy. He looked at Jaime and give him the glass. “Now, this is a _ Séptimo Regimiento. _I think it’s from Argentina or something. If what you’re looking for is to get drunk and pass out, then this is your drink.” Jaime took the glass and took a good sip of it. The drink burnt his throat. He coughed, and Tyrion just watched him with a smile.

“What the hell is this?” Jaime asked, still with the glass in his hand.

“It is a mixture of rum, tequila, vodka, whiskey, and I think…” Tyrion grabbed the glass from Jaime’s hand and took a little sip. He tasted it for a moment. “Oh yes, Pablo has added strawberry juice to the mixture.” Jaime took the glass once again and took another sip. Yes, he was going to get as drunk as ever, and hopefully, he would forget about everything for a while.

* * *

Cersei traveled to King’s Landing to surprise him. And big was his surprise, indeed. For the last couple of days, he had been seriously thinking about breaking up with her, and the last thing he needed at that moment was having Cersei with him. 

However, there weren’t much he could do about it right then. He hadn’t made up his mind yet, and asking her to leave his place would be just for worse. He asked her to go with him to a bar where some kids from school were gonna be playing some music. She agreed, but not without arguing about it.

* * *

The first thing he did when they arrived to the place was going straight to the bar and asked for a Whiskey and a daiquiri. Once he had both glasses on his hands, he went to the table, Cersei was waiting. He gave her the Whiskey and sat in front of her.

“When we go back to your apartment we could start to see what things you’ll take to Highgarden and which ones you’ll throw away.” She said.

“Yeah, maybe.” He answered. He wasn’t so sure he wanted to move in with her anymore, he wasn’t so sure if he wanted to be with her anymore. Maybe Tyrion was right, and he was with Cersei out of habit, not because he loved her. 

Cersei spent the next forty minutes talking about what things he should throw away - maybe some of his old books, and some of his fencing trophies - when they move to Highgarden. Jaime wasn’t really paying attention to her, he just wanted the night to be over, to go to sleep so he could wake up the following morning and go to school where he’d see Brienne on the front row, watching him with those gorgeous blue eyes of her, watching him as if everything that he said was something incredibly amazing. And he saw her right then. He thought he might be going crazy, not only he daydreamt about her, but also he had hallucinations about her, too. He blinked quickly and watched again. Nope, that tall girl with a lovely blue dress and magnificent blue eyes wasn’t a product of his sick imagination, she was indeed at the bar. His eyes followed her to the bar, and watched her talking to the barman.

“Jaime, are you listening to me?” He felt Cersei’s hand over his forearm, that made him snap out of his thoughts.

“Huh? Sorry, what did you say?” He asked. 

“I’m going to the bathroom so we can leave.” She said coldly. 

“Okay, I’ll wait for you by the door.” He thanked God for the perfect time and for the perfect excuse. Both stood up from their seats and headed in different directions. He went straight to Brienne. “Blue looks good on you, Brie.” _ Brie? You dumbass, _ he thought. Brienne turned around, holding her glass and straw between her lips. He held his breath for a second. _ This girl is gonna be the death of me, for God’s sake. I’m fucking sick. _ “This was the last place I thought I’ll find you.” He honestly said. Brienne gave him a shy smile, and he couldn’t help but smile back at her. _ What the hell is wrong with me? She’s just a kid. _He told himself. 

“The bathroom was _hideous_.” He heard Cersei said from behind him. _ Shit, not now. _ “Hideous as her,” he barely heard Cersei mumbled. He gave her a warning look. _ I hope Brie hadn’t heard that. _ “Baby, who is this?” she asked. He saw her checking Brienne out, and he could clearly see the grimace of disgust she did. Jaime felt anger ran through her veins. _ Great, exactly what you needed, you moron. _He took a deep breath before introducing them.

“Cers, this is Brienne, one of my students… Brie, this is Cersei.” He said. 

“The girlfriend,” Cersei added. He knew she only wanted to intimidate Brienne, and he hated it. _ This is going to end up bad, you shouldn’t be feeling this for Brienne, you dumbass. _He told himself.

“Nice to meet you,” Brienne said, and somehow he could tell that she was lying, she didn’t find nice meeting Cersei.

“I wish I could say the same,” was Cersei’s answer. “Jaime, we were leaving?” She told him. He didn’t want to leave, really. What he wanted was to stay a little longer and talk to Brienne. _ What. The. Fucking. Fuck. _ “We have to organize your moving,” Cersei insisted, grabbing him by his arm. “He’s coming to live with me in Highgarden.”

“You’re moving?” Brienne asked him, her voice was barely a whisper, almost lost in that noisy place. 

“Did I speak Chinese?” Cersei asked, rudely. He had enough of that bullshit.

“There’s no need to be rude, Cersei,” he told her. He deliberately used his angry voice, so Cersei would understand that she had crossed the line.

“Don’t worry, I’m used to that. Have a nice night, Jaime, Cersei.” Brienne left them. Cersei tried to pull him to the exit door, but he didn’t move.

“C’mon, Jaime. We have to go,” Cersei said.

Jaime gave her the car keys. “Wait for me in the car, I’ll be there in a moment.” He told her. He felt his voice empty and angry, and he knew she had felt it too because she didn’t even try to argue, she just grabbed the keys and did what he had told her. Jaime went where Brienne was and grabbed her by the arm. She turned around again. 

“I’m sorry about her. Really. I don’t know why she treated you that way.” _ Actually, I do know why she treated you that way, but I can’t tell you. _She stared at him with those sapphire blue eyes of her. Dammit, they were gorgeous. 

“I said everything was all right, don’t worry. Go with her, she looked very excited about organizing your moving.” She gave him a sad little smile that broke his heart, even though it shouldn’t have to. He let her go, turned around, and went to the car.

The drive back home was uncomfortable. The tension in the air was palpable. Once they were into the apartment, he stared at Cersei.

“Why?” he simply asked.

“Why what?” was she seriously playing that card?

“Why did you treat her like that? She didn’t do anything wrong,” he said.

“What are you talking about?”

“For God’s sake, Cersei, stop it!” he snapped at her.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” she asked him.

“The same fucking thing I’m asking you: what the hell is wrong with you? Why the fuck did you treat her like that?”

“Because I don’t like her.” She answered, and that boiled his blood. 

“She’s just a kid. You can’t treat her like shit, whether you like her or not.” He spoke in such a way that his words were clear to her. He wasn’t going to tolerate this bullshit from anyone.

“What’s so special about this ugly girl, anyway?” she asked. Jaime took a deep breath, grabbed his jacket, and walked to the door. “Where are you going?” she asked him. 

“Away, I need to be alone.” He said. 

He drove back to the bar. When he got in there again, the band was ending their performance. He heard Bebe Rexha’s “I’m a Mess.” He saw Brienne going on stage, grabbing a microphone and singing it along. _ She has a lovely voice, _ he thought. He enjoyed watching her dancing and singing, she looked free. _ Dammit, _ he thought, _ this is gonna end badly. _

* * *

Instead of going back to his apartment, he went to Tyrion’s. He really didn’t want to discuss the events of the night right then, and he was grateful when Tyrion didn’t push him. 

Before going to bed, all he could think about was what Brienne had said earlier, that she was used to people treating her like shit. _ She’s used to that? To people treating her like that? The fuck? She should be treated like the damn princess that she is, for God’s sake. What the hell is wrong with people? _. 

The following morning he woke up to a text from Cersei telling him she had to go back to Highgarden and that as soon as he can he should travel there to visit her. He didn’t answer the text right away, he wasn’t sure about anything any longer. 

* * *


	5. Chapter 5

Brienne was at the carnival, in a queue to the Ferris wheel. It was by far her favorite attraction. She gave the guy her ticket when her time came. 

“Where’s your partner?” He asked her very loudly and very rudely.

“Um… I’m alone.” She said blushing.

“We have a loner!” The guy shouted. “A loner over here in bucket seven!”

“You really need to be that loud?” Asked Brienne.

“Sure, I do.” Said the man. Brienne felt her entire face hot.  _ Asshole _ , she thought.

“Is this seat taken, my lady?” asked Jaime as he handed his ticket to the man. Brienne shook his head, and Jaime sat next to her. The Ferris wheel started moving.

“Thank you.” She muttered.

“Any time.” He said. Brienne watched as his face went pale with the movement. 

“Are you scared?” asked Brienne.

“Um… maybe it’s not the best time to confess you that um… I’m a little scared of heights.” He said. “I wish this confession doesn’t undermine my position as an authority figure.”

“Don’t worry,” she said. “Maybe if you still have your Lannister helmet you’ll feel more secure.” 

“You remember that story?” He asked, a little surprised.

“I remember everything you say.” She said without thinking. Oberyn Martell was in bucket six, right above them. 

“If the bucket’s a-rocking, don’t come a-kn-kn-knocking.” He shouted, watching at them. “Mr. Lannister, you rock my world!” 

“Don’t get upset... “ Jaime told Brienne, as he watched her right into her eyes. “I’d like to tell you that we all grow out of it, but it’s a lie. Some of us will always be a little childish, which isn’t entirely bad because the truth is that as you get older, life gets more confusing. Take me as an example; I’ve been going out with Cersei for almost my entire life, and now she wants me to move to Highgarden with her, and I know I should do it, make the commitment and grow up, but I don’t really think I want to, at least not with her.” Brienne just remained silent, not knowing what to say.  _ Did he just confess me that he doesn’t wanna be with his girlfriend anymore? _ “Maybe I shouldn’t be talking about this with you.”

“Don’t worry. I mean… It’s nice to have someone to talk to.” She smiled at him.

“Yeah… I’m sure that the guy you choose to spend your life with will be very, very lucky.” He said whispering. He sounded almost jealous.

Brienne blushed, “you have to say that because you’re my teacher.”

“Actually, I shouldn’t say that because I’m your teacher.” He smiled a little.

* * *

“You dated Brienne the Beast?” Oberyn was shocked.

“Man, she isn’t a beast. She’s the nicest girl I’ve ever met .” Galladon lied. “And when she dumped me, she broke my heart.”

“And you’re still friends with her?” asked one of Oberyn's friends.

“Really good friends, if you know what I mean.”

* * *

“You have to go with your brother and your cousin to Seattle for the entire summer?” asked Arianne.

“Yes, it’s totally lame. I was looking forward to going to New York with you girls, but… I have no choice.” Said Daenerys.

“You know? Brienne always goes to Barcelona in the summer, her father owns a mansion there.” Interrupted Galladon. That wasn’t a lie, Selwyn Tarth did own a house in Barcelona, some kind of inheritance of one aunt of his, but the siblings hadn’t gone there for at least four years.

Arianne, Daenerys, and Missandei opened their mouths, impressed. _I can't believe how shallow they are,_ thought Galladon.

* * *

“As you can see, this is not Literature,” said Jaime. He was standing against a desk in the Science classroom. “We’ve combined some classes to make this seminar possible. The sexologist will be here any minute now.” Brienne was sitting in the front row, next to a girl named Pia. She looked to the door and saw Sansa in the corridor looking at her. Brienne waved, and Sansa got closer to the door. In that minute, Jaime looked to where Brienne was watching. “Oh, you must be Shae.” 

“I… um… if you say so.” She said a little startled.

“Everybody, this is Shae, the sexologist who will give you the sex talk.” He said. “Shae, this is everybody. I'll be back in a minute.” He said and then left the classroom.

“Hi…” she said nervously. “So, sex… Wh-when you like a person you do it with him or her… and sometimes that person calls you, sometimes not, that’s life.” Brienne laughed a little and let her books dropped. Sansa immediately went to pick them up.

“What are you doing here?” She asked, still laughing a little. 

“I came to say hi…” Said Sansa. “Your teacher is a total hottie.”

“Yes, and he’s coming back, so go and give the class, Shae.” She said mockingly. Jaime was coming back from wherever he went. Sansa went back to the desk and looked to her left; there were two boxes, one with bananas and one with condoms. She grabbed the box with the bananas and started giving one to each student, then she did the same with the condoms. 

“Imagine that the bananas are the real thing.” She said as she grabbed a big banana, “Well, at least the real thing in a land that I like to call Every Man’s Fantasy.” Some of the girls in the class laughed at the joke. “Now, never open the condom's packet with your teeth because you might damage it, and we don’t want that, do we? You must know, safe sex is very important. You must always wear one of these,” she said while showing a condom, “because not only prevents unwanted pregnancies but also protects us from venereal diseases.” Brienne laughed a little, Sansa was pretty good at giving the sex talk. 

“This is gross.” Muttered Pia.

“Maybe it's because we’re not supposed to have sex with bananas?” Brienne tried to joke, and surprisingly, Pia smiled.

“Can I tell you something? I-I think I’m ready. To have sex I mean… There’s this guy that I really like, and I think he likes me back.” Said Pia.

“Are you sure about that? It’s a pretty big deal, and you must be sure about it.” Brienne pointed out. “You know? When swans find their partner, they spend the rest of their lives together, they even can die of a broken heart if one of them dies.” She continued while trying once again to put the condom on the banana without success.

“Yeah, but I’m not a swan.” Said Pia.

“It was an analogy, Pia.” Interrupted Jaime. Brienne got nervous, and somehow, the condom she was trying to put on the banana snapped from her hands and ended up hitting Jaime’s face. 

“Oh, God, I’m so sorry.” Brienne apologized, wanting the earth to swallow her in that precise moment. She felt how her face grew redder and redder.

“It’s all right. And that was a beautiful analogy, Brienne.” Jaime grinned.

“Guys, awful news about the prom.” Exclaimed a girl. “I just saw on twitter that Casterly High School is also doing a Masquerade.”

“What?!” the entire classroom started to complain. “This can’t be happening.”

“Calm down, calm down.” Jaime tried to soothe the mood, but no one paid attention to him. “EVERYBODY, SIT DOWN RIGHT NOW.” He yelled, and the entire class did as they were told, even Sansa. “We just have to change the theme. Any suggestions?”

“What about a night in Paris?” asked Sansa.

“Oh, lord no. It’s been done a hundred times already.” Complained Missandei.

“Maybe… I don’t know… The nineties?” Suggested Jaime.

“Mr. Lannister, do you think we are amateurs?” asked Daenerys.

“I know… Brienne, you should suggest our new prom theme.” Said Oberyn.

“Me?” Brienne inquired.

“Yes, you. I think you have the answer.” 

“Um… Well… What about ‘Meant for Each Other,' famous couples throughout history. They could be couples from movies, like Jack and Rose, or from books, like Romeo and Juliet.” Brienne proposed. The entire class seemed to consider it, after all, it wasn’t a lousy prom theme.

“All right, ‘Meant for Each Other’ it is.” Agreed Oberyn at last. The entire class cheered for Brienne.

* * *

As prom got closer and closer, Brienne, Daenerys, Missandei, and Arianne became friends, as Sandor wanted her to. All four of them spent lots of time together. Brienne was thrilled, though she felt a little wrong about Margaery.  _ My job comes first _ , she told herself, but she still felt like she had betrayed her. 

Brienne had suggested to Sandor to write about how teens bought clothes, wear them once leaving the tag on so they could return them the following day. Sandor found that idea repulsive. 

“_R_ _ emember what we have talked about? Sex scandals, drugs, bribery, indecent relationships. That kind of content I want in your next suggestion, Brienne _ .” He had told her before hanging up the phone. Davos had threatened her and Sandor to fire them if she didn’t suggest something doable. She knew she had to find something good to write about by the end of next week because if not, she and Sandor were screwed, and that was making her very nervous. It wasn’t just her job that was at risk, but also Sandor’s, who hadn’t been anything but supportive with her in the last eight weeks.

That nervousness only faded away when she was with Jaime. They were in the same group for the preparations for prom. Brienne stayed after school almost every day to paint with him the mural where, at prom night couples would take pictures together, and also make sure everything was going according to what was planned.

And after they were done for the day, she used to go with Missandei, Daenerys, and Arianne to watch the baseball practice. 

“Look, Oberyn is totally crunching on you.” Daenerys pointed out. Oberyn had been staring at their direction for the last ten minutes, but Brienne hadn’t noticed him. She was more interested in watching Jaime, who also was watching the practice while drinking a soda. His clothes were stained with paint, and probably half of those stains were her fault. His face was also stained with yellow paint, that Brienne was sure it was her fault.

“Do I want to be crunched?” She asked, not really caring at all.

“By Oberyn? Oh, yeah.” Agreed the three girls. 

“I heard he wanted to ask you to be his date,” Arianne confessed. _ If only he were the guy I wanted to be asked by _ , Brienne thought.

* * *

“The hottest guy at school is going to ask me to be his date to the prom,” Brienne told Sansa on Saturday afternoon. They were at Sansa’s because Galladon had decided to throw a party at their house and she had to pretend that she didn’t live there. 

“And do you like him?” Asked Sansa.

“Well, he’s a good guy, but he’s a kid and...” 

“And he’s not Jaime,” Sansa completed.

“What does Jaime have to do with any of these?”

“Oh my lord, don’t you tell me you hadn’t noticed the way he looks at you.” Sansa sounded exasperated. 

“He’s my teacher, he doesn’t look at me in any special way.” Brienne tried to argue.

“Sometimes you can be really stubborn, my dear friend. He feels something for you.” Sansa explained. 

“That’s impossible. He’s too handsome to notice someone like me. And he has a girlfriend.” 

“Brienne for the love of God. Stop this bullshit about you not being good enough for anybody.” Sansa cried. “No, no. Wait. You’re right. You’re not enough. You’re way more than most people deserve. You’re loyal, brave, kind, smart, gentle. And as your best friend I’m allowed to tell you that you have a rocking body, I mean, I wish I had those legs and your ass. You have the most astonishing eyes in the entire universe. And the freckles made you unique. Brienne, stop hating yourself about the way you look, because to me, to Ygritte, to Sandor, to Galladon, and now to Jaime too, you’re nothing but beautiful, in the inside and the outside.” Brienne started to cry, touched by the words her friend had told her. Sansa hugged her. “Now, let’s go back to Jaime. This girlfriend of his, I can assure you it won’t last, trust me. How do you feel about him?”

Brienne took a moment before answering, trying to wipe away the tears from her cheeks. “I-I think I l-love him, San.” She stuttered. Loving was the scariest thing that ever happened to her. “And, if what you say is true and I indeed have a chance with him, it will all fade away when he finds out that I’ve been lying this whole time, he’s gonna hate me. And he’ll be right in hating me.” She felt how the tears went down her cheeks again.

“Maybe at first he’ll get angry, but I don’t really think it will last too long. I repeat; he loves you, Brienne. Just pay attention to the way he looks at you.” Sansa tried to comfort her.

* * *

Brienne arrived at the party when everybody was already there. She looked for her brother, and found him in the kitchen, making out with Pia. 

“Oh, hi, Brie.” Greeted Pia, once she noticed that Brienne was standing there. “Look, I found my swan.” Brienne faked a smile.

“That’s great, Pia. Gal, can I talk to you for a moment?” She asked her brother. Galladon followed her to a corner in the kitchen. “Gal, dear brother of mine. This is illegal.” She said to him, faking a smile. 

“Me and Pia? Why?”

“Where do I start? Oh right, you’re twenty-seven, and she’s seventeen. You’re ten years her senior.”

“Semantics.”

“You’re breaking up with that girl. I’m serious, Gal. It’s wrong.” 

“I’m sorry, may I cut in?” asked Oberyn from behind Brienne. 

“Sure, she’s all yours,” Galladon told him, before going back to Pia.

“Can we go someplace quieter?” asked Oberyn.

“Sure, follow me.” She answered. She led the way upstairs to her room.

“Oh my God, Galladon sister’s a loser.” Said Oberyn as soon as she switched the lights on. Luckily she didn’t have any framed pictures in there. They sat on her bed. “So, maybe you already know, but I meant to ask you out to prom, but there’s something different about asking it face to face. I know we had a rough start, and I really…”

“Sure, I’ll go with you.” She interrupted him. 

“Oh, great!” He told her. “Where should I pick you up?” 

Brienne thought about it for a minute. “Pick me up here, so Gal, Pia and we can go together. Is that okay?”

“It’s fantastic.”

* * *

It was Friday morning, the following day was going to be the prom, and at school, every single student seemed to be making some last-minute arrangements. Brienne was discussing with Daenerys and Missandei where to put some flowers that had been left over when Jaime interrupted.

“I’m sorry girls, can I take Brienne from you for a moment?” He asked.

“Sure, Mr. L.” Said Daenerys. “See you later, Brie.” They left them alone. Jaime went to sit on a bench, and Brienne followed him.

“What do you want to talk about, Mr. Lannister?” She asked. 

“I got you a meeting with the admission guy from  _ RKU _ .” He said.

“Y-you did what?” Brienne managed to articulate. “R-RKU?”

“Yeah, RKU. I made some calls, apparently being part of the Lannister family has some perks, and I got him to look at your writing, and he agreed to meet with you.”

“You really believe in me, don’t you?”

“Of course I do, Brie. You’re a great writer, and someday you’ll be a great reporter. I know that.” He told her, in his voice, there was more than just admiration. “You just have to find your story.”

* * *

Sandor made Brienne come over the office later that day.

“You’ll write about him.” He told her.

“Him? No. No way. I’m not writing about him.” She complained.

“Oh, the hell you are. It has everything: love, sex, intrigue, immorality in the education system.”

“He’s my teacher.”

“Exactly my point ‘Teacher-Student relationships, how close is too close’.”

“Sandor for the love of God, there’s nothing between Jai… Mr. Lannister and me.”

“That’s a great joke, Brienne. I have the entire office here in my fucking office every day watching how this handsome guy gives you heart-eyes all day long. It’s annoying. Besides, I’ve already shown this to Davos, and he agreed it’s a good story.” He stated, without leaving room to argue.

“You did what?”

“I showed it to Davos. This isn’t a joke, Brie. Both our asses are on the line. This is the story. End of discussion.”


	6. Chapter 6

It finally was prom night. Sansa had come over to Brienne’s to help her with the costume and make-up. She and Oberyn had decided to go as Romeo and Juliet. Her dress was blue, a perfect match for her sapphire eyes. Her make-up was very light, Sansa had told her that she didn’t want to overshadow her eyes as they were going to be the leading ‘jewelry’ she was going to wear that night. In her neck, there was hanging a beautiful necklace; it was silver and gold. It had a moon and sun; it was something beautiful and discrete. When she went downstairs, her brother left speechless.

“Brie… You look… amazing.” He told her as soon as he was able to speak once again.

“Thank you. You look pretty handsome too. Let me guess… Danny from Grease?” 

“You got it!” He laughed.

“Thank you for everything, Gal. I wouldn’t have been this far without you.”

“I’ll always be by your side, sis. I’m your big brother, that’s what I’m here for, to look after you.” They smiled at each other, suddenly overwhelmed. She gave him a quick hug. “Dammit! My wallet.” He shouted as she ran to the living room to find it. Brienne opened the door and went outside to wait for her date. A few moments after, she saw a limo coming closer to her house. She saw Oberyn Martel coming out of the sunroof. Suddenly, memories of her real prom came to her mind.  _ Dammit, dammit, dammit _ , she thought. She felt her heart speeding up its heartbeats, and her breathing was shallow. She was scared. Really scared. But Oberyn, instead of having another girl with him and throwing her rotten tomatoes, took out a blue rose. Brienne couldn’t help but smile widely. 

“For you, Brienne,” Oberyn shouted.

* * *

Brienne stepped out of the limo and waited for Oberyn to come by her side so they could go into the building together. She saw Daenerys dressed as Vivian from Pretty Woman, Arianne dressed as Baby from Dirty Dancing, and Missandei dressed as Rose from Titanic.  _ They’re stunning _ , she thought. 

“Oh, Brie, you look _marvelous_,” Daenerys told her once they reached them. 

“You too, Dany.”

“Let’s go inside. This has already started.” Said Arianne.

They all went inside. The place looked gorgeous. All the effort that was put in making this night unforgettable looked like succeeding so far. Brienne saw Jaime talking with some teachers in one corner of the room. He was wearing a tuxedo that got Brienne’s mouthwatering. She thought that every-day-Jaime was handsome, but this man standing over there was much more than handsome.  _ He looks half a god _ , she thought. Suddenly, Jaime turned his head, and his eyes found hers. She saw him smiling at her, and even from a distance, she could tell his eyes had some kind of peculiar shine.

“ _ I can hear you thinking, Brie. Yes, he is looking at you, and yes, he does find you beautiful. _ ” Sansa told her through the headphones. She, once again, had gone with Bronn to make sure everything was alright. They went to their table. Missandei was making some faces in front of a pocket mirror. 

“Um… What are you doing?” Brienne asked her.

“Practising my surprise face when they name prom court.” She explained.

“May I have this dance with you?” Oberyn asked Brienne while offering her his hand. 

“Sure.” She said as she took it. They went to the dance floor, and moments later the Denominators entered the room, they were conjoined by a string at their waists. 

“What are you supposed to be? Other than freaks.” Brienne heard Arianne telling to Margaery. 

“We’re DNA. Double helix? Oh right, you hadn’t passed bio. Excuse us.” She said, looking at them as if they were idiots.

“Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Mr. Lannister!” The DJ told through the microphone. All the kids cheered. 

“Ok, ok.” He grinned. “Our 2019 prom court. And the princesses are Miss Daenerys, Miss Missandei, and Miss Arianne.” All three girls went on stage to receive their bouquets of flowers while the crowd cheered. Once they were wearing them, Jaime continued. “And the princes are Mr. Robin Arrin. Mr. Trystane Martell and Mr. Galladon… Mr. Galladon.” All the people cheered for their princes too. Gall shouted with excitement while going to the stage. “Now, our prom King is… Mr. Oberyn Martell.” The crowd once again cheered. “And our prom Queen is…” he remained silent for a moment, to maintain the suspense. “Miss Brienne Tarth.” He finally said. The way he said it, it was like he was proud of her. Brienne couldn’t move.  _ Is this a joke? _ She thought. 

“ _ OH MY GOD BRIE! YOU’RE PROM QUEEN! MOVE! GO CLAIM YOUR CROWN! _ ” Brienne heard Sansa shouting in her ear. She went on-stage, not really trusting this not to be a joke, as in Carrie. She looked up just in case there was a bucket of blood hanging over her head, but there was nothing. Jaime put the crown on her head and caressed her cheek lightly. Brienne felt in Heaven. They looked for a brief moment right in their eyes. He smiled at her and continued speaking. “The Queen and the King will now have their first dance.” A song started to play. Oberyn offered his hand once more, and Brienne took it. They danced the entire song, and when the last notes were playing, Jaime cut in.

“Mind if I cut in?” Jaime asked Oberyn.

“Not at all. See you later, Brie.” Oberyn said.

“May I have the next dance, my lady?” Jaime asked Brienne, doing a ridiculous bow, and then extending his hand to her.

“Of course, my lord.” She said as she took his hand. The DJ started to play So Close by Jon McLaughlin. Jaime grabbed her by the waist with his right hand while holding her right hand in his left. They began to dance slowly. She was an inch taller than him, and she was glad she was wearing her flat shoes, not the high heels that Sansa wanted.

“You make a beautiful Queen, Brienne,” Jaime whispered. They were really close, so close that she could feel his breath brushing her cheek. “Blue is a good color for you, it matches your eyes.”

“You look handsome, too, Jaime.” She managed to mutter.

“I’ve always hated wearing this stuff. I feel like I’m at my wedding or something.” He confessed.

“At some point, you’ll be at your wedding. Waiting for Cersei at the altar. I’m sure you’re gonna be stunning there too.” She said. Every word tasted bitter in her mouth.

“I doubt it… We broke up last week. I mean, we were over for months now, I just made it official last week.”

“You… You what?” Brienne didn’t know what to say. Jaime only smiled at her.

“ _ I told you he loves you, _ ” Sansa said through the headphones.

“You have the most beautiful eyes I’ve ever seen, Brienne.” He told her. She noticed they were closer than before. Their bodies were brushing.

“I-I have something to tell you.” She said. She looked to her right, putting together some courage. She saw Oberyn dancing with Margaery and Daenerys, Missandei, and Arianne opening a can of dog food. Brienne let go of Jaime’s embrace and went closer to them. Daenerys was about to throw it over Margaery, but Brienne slapped her hand, and the content of the can of dog’s food landed on Arianne and Missandei. All the people who were there started to laugh at them.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Brienne asked, completely angry.

“I knew it. You’re a loser.” Shouted Missandei, while wiping off the dog’s food from her body.

“You ruined everything,” added Daenerys.

“You don’t deserve to be prom queen.” Arianne cried. 

“Let me tell you something,” Brienne said. She took off her crown and threw it away. She did the same with the cam and the mic she had. “I don’t give a shit about being your stupid prom queen. I’m twenty-three years old, for God’s sake. I’m an undercover reporter form King’s Landing Post, and I’ve been beating my brains out trying to impress you people,” Brienne shouted. She didn’t have the strength to keep up with the lie. “Let me tell you something, Daenerys, Arianne, Missandei, you have spent your entire lives trying to make other people feel like shit about themselves only for you to feel important. Why her?” She asked, pointing to Margaery.

"Let me tell you something about this girl. She’s the sweetest person I know. When I was new here, she befriended me, no questions asked. But you three… they started to like me after my brother, Galladon, told you to do it.” Brienne felt tears on her cheeks. “Once you’re out of high school, it won’t matter if you were prom queen or queen bee or the quarterback of the football team or the biggest nerd in school. Just find out who you are and not be afraid of it. And let other people be who they are without being afraid of being mocked about it.” She left the room, looking for Jaime that, at some point in her unplanned speech, had disappeared. Once she was outside, Bronn approached her.

“What the hell happened in there? We lost the connection. Please tell me you have something on Lannister, Sandor is going nuts, he’s calling me every five minutes.”

“I’ve told you I was not going to write about Jaime.” She said. Jaime came from behind Bronn. Bronn turned around and saw him.

“I’m just… I’m just gonna go.” He muttered.

“You were writing about me?” He asked her. All she could see in his eyes was how heartbroken he was. 

“No. I couldn’t, and I didn’t want to.” She said. “I think I owe an apology. I mean… This wasn’t supposed to be like this. I wasn’t supposed to fall…” She hesitated a moment, deciding not to reveal how she felt at that very moment. “Anyway, it wasn’t even my idea to write about you. And… I was hoping that you’d understand me…”

“Understand what? That you were writing a story about me?” He was shouting a little. “What the fuck?! Maybe I should be relieved that I’m allowed to feel all I feel for you. But I just… I can’t understand. I can’t understand all the lying. Everything you said was a lie. I’m sorry. I gotta go, Brienne.” He said, and he went away.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so so so sorry for the delay. This chapter wasn't read-proofed, so it probably is a bit messy (I've written it in the middle of a film shooting). All mistakes are mine :) I hope you enjoy it, though.

Jaime found himself at the carnival. He was wandering through some of the attractions there were when he heard a guy shouting, “We have a loner, a loner over here in bucket seven!” He looked to where the shouts were coming, and he saw a very red Brienne sitting in a bucket of the Ferris Wheel. Without thinking about it, he walked over there and handed the ticket to the guy.

“Is this seat taken, my lady?” He asked her. She shook her head, and he sat next to her. That was the very first time that they sat that close to each other. The Ferris Wheel started to move and he tensed. Wrong _ time to remember that you’re afraid of heights, genius,  _ he heard his inner voice telling him.

“Thank you,” she told him.

“Any time.” He replied. Brienne was staring at him. 

“Are you scared?” she asked softly.

He gave her a tiny little smile. “Um… maybe it’s not the best time to confess you that, um… I’m a little scared of heights.” He confessed to her. “I wish this confession doesn’t undermine my position as an authority figure.” He tried to joke.

“Don’t worry,” she told him. “Maybe if you still have your Lannister helmet you’d feel more secure.” 

“You remember that story?” He was impressed she remembered it. He wasn’t sure if even Cersei remembered it. 

“I remember everything you say.” She said and blushed. Jaime saw that Oberyn Martell was in bucket six, right above them.  _ Dammit,  _ he thought.

“If the bucket’s a-rocking, don’t come a-kn-kn-knocking,” Oberyn shouted, kinda ruining the moment. “Mr. Lannister, you rock my world!”

“Don’t get upset…” he told her as he watched her right into her eyes. He thought for a moment what to say to her, but he didn’t know, so he said the first thing it came to his mind. “I’d like to tell you that we all grow out of it, but it’s a lie. Some of us will always be a little childish, which isn’t entirely bad because the truth is that as you get older, life gets more confusing. Take me as an example; I’ve been going out with Cersei for almost my entire life, and now she wants me to move to Highgarden with her, and I know I should do it, make the commitment and grow up, but I don’t really think I want to, at least not with her.” Okay, he just told the trigger of all his doubts that he didn’t want to be with his girlfriend anymore, great. Since Cersei had left King’s Landing, they hadn’t seen each other. They barely talked anymore, and he knew the relationship was over for a long time. Tyrion was right; they were together out of a habit, they didn’t love each other, not the same way as before, anyway. He had to be honest with him and with Cersei, and if he could tell Brienne he really wasn’t sure about his relationship with his girlfriend, he sure could (and should) tell Cersei. And that scared the shit out of him, talking with Cersei would mean the end of an era. “Maybe I shouldn’t be talking about this with you.”

“Don’t worry, I mean… it’s nice to have someone to talk to.” She smiled at him, and he felt like burning from the inside out. He had to fight the impulse of kissing her right there.  _ The man who’d be lucky enough to be next to her would be a lucky bastard _ , he thought, and jealousy invaded his body.

“Yeah…” he said, “I’m sure the guy you choose to spend your life with will be a fortunate guy.” He couldn’t help but whisper. He noticed that she had blushed.

“You have to say that because you’re my teacher.” She said.  _ If you only knew how I feel about you,  _ he thought.

“Actually, I shouldn’t say that because I’m your teacher.” He smiled at her.

* * *

He knocked on Tyrion’s door, he’d been going there a lot lately. Tyrion opened the door, and as always, he had a glass of wine in his hand.

“Brother, what do I owe you the pleasure?” He asked, not letting him get into the apartment. “Let me guess, Brienne?” Jaime made a grimace, and Tyrion smiled, “Oh, I know you so well. Of course it is about Brienne.” Tyrion moved to a side, and Jaime got into the apartment, “What happened?” Jaime walked straight to the bar and poured himself a glass of Scotch. 

“I met her at the carnival. She was alone, and we rode the Ferris wheel together…” He said. He went to the balcony and leaned on the railing, watching the city lights.

“You rode the Ferris wheel?” Tyrion interrupted him with a little smile. He was sited on an outdoors armchair.

“Yes, that’s not the point, though,” he said, turning around to face his brother. “Then she said she should be heading home, and I insisted on walking her. It just seemed dangerous, and then I realized it wasn’t proper to walk her home…” He drank the content of the glass in just one big gulp.

“Why? You said it, it was dangerous for a seventeen-year-old to walk alone in the night.” Tyrion said just to make Jaime feel better. “Jaime, you didn’t do anything wrong. You just wanted to make sure she was alright, there’s no harm in that. There’s nothing illegal, either.” 

“Yeah, but still, it’s improper. Without mention how I feel about her.”

"Maybe, but you haven't acted on those feelings, so still, you haven't done anything wrong." Tyrion took a deep breath. "Look, here's what I think. Since you met this girl, your whole world has been upside down, am I right?" Jaime nodded, so Tyrion continued, "And you tried to deny those feelings ever since, although you couldn't. I mean, Brienne made you consider breaking up with Cersei. You had the biggest fight with her because she had insulted Brienne." Tyrion paused, waiting for Jaime to process all that. "What I think you should do is to break up with Cersei, because you don't love her, at least not the same way as before. Then you should take some distance from everything, from Brienne. You could take this next month of license and maybe do that goddamn trip you wanted to do, and use that free time to think about everything. And when you come back, you’ll be sure what your feelings are. And if it turns out that it is like I think it is and you’re madly in love with her, then well… She’ll be legal by the time you come back.” Tyrion laughed, he couldn’t keep it serious.

* * *

On Monday, Jaime asked Principal Varys if he could take the next month of license. The man agreed, but he could only take them after the prom, he said he needed them to control the kids. Jaime could work with that: prom was only three weeks away. 

“Also, I have something to ask you, Jaime.” Said Varys. “A sexologist is coming to give the sex-talk to the kids of your first-hour class, and I need you to keep an eye on the kids, so they don’t… disturb the poor woman.” 

“Martell and his group is worrying you?” asked Jaime.

“Exactly…”

“Don’t worry, I’ll handle them.”

* * *

Jaime took his class to the biology classroom. There, he gave them a little introduction to what was going on. He saw Brienne looking at someone in the door, and he looked that way; a young woman was standing there.  _ That must be the sexologist… Shae. _ He thought.

“You must be Shae,” he greeted her.

“I… um… if you say so.” The woman said. Jaime made her get into the classroom and introduced her to the class. He excused himself and went out of the classroom to look for a chair. He went back to the classroom and sat in the back. Shae was giving each student a banana and a condom. When she was done, she told the kids what they should do with the banana and the condom. “Now, never open the condom with your teeth because you might damage it, and we don’t want it, do we? You must know, safe sex is very important. You must always wear one of these because not only prevents unwanted pregnancies but also protects us from venereal diseases.” Jaime thought it would be a good idea to supervise the work of the kids, so he started wandering through the desks. Jaime heard Brienne laughed a little, and unconsciously walked nearer her. He heard the analogy Brienne had made about swans and life-partners.

“Yeah, but I’m not a swan.” He heard Pia said. Jaime rolled his eyes; she _ really didn’t understand the analogy?  _ He thought, and he decided to interrupt the conversation.

“It was an analogy, Pia,” he said, scaring Brienne. The condom in Brienne’s hands snapped from them and hit him on his face. He rubbed where the condom had hit him as he watched Brienne’s face growing redder and redder.

“Oh, God, I’m so sorry.” She apologized.

“It’s all right. And it was a beautiful analogy, Brienne.” He said, and he walked to the front of the classroom.

“Guys, awful news about the prom,” exclaimed a girl from the back of the class. “I just saw on twitter that Casterly High School is also doing a masquerade.”

The whole class started to complain about it. Jaime tried to make the kids calm down, but no one heard them. “EVERYBODY, SIT DOWN RIGHT NOW.” He yelled, and they did as they were told. “We just have to change the theme. Any suggestions?” Sansa suggested a night in Paris, and he suggested the nineties, both ideas weren’t welcome. 

“I know… Brienne, you should suggest our new prom theme,” Oberyn Martell said.

“Me?” Asked Brienne, Jaime could see how unsure and nervous she was.

“Yes, you. I think you have the answer.”

Jaime stared at Brienne while she thought about it. “Um… well… what about ‘Meant for Each Other,’ famous couples throughout history. They could be couples from movies, like Jack and Rose, or from books, like Romeo and Juliet.”  _ Well, that’s an excellent idea,  _ Jaime thought. The entire class considered it for a moment. 

“All right, ‘Meant for Each Other’ it is.” Oberyn agreed at last, and the whole class broke into cheers for Brienne. Jaime couldn’t help but feel proud of Brienne.

* * *

Prom was getting closer and closer, and all the student body, along with the teachers, had joined forces to make it possible. Workgroups were established, each one with a task assigned. Jaime and Brienne were on the same group, they were the ones who had to paint the mural where photos would be taken on Prom night. That was the smallest group of them all. They were just four people: Galladon, Arianne, Brienne, and Jaime. They decided it was better if they split the job, Galladon and Arianne would paint the mural in the morning during their free time, and then Brienne and Jaime would stay after school to paint it. They talked about any little thing that they found interesting, she stained his t-shirt, joking with him, and he gave it back to her, painting her own clothes.

Some days they took a break to watch the baseball practice. She went to where her new friends were sitting, and he sat on the first row, trying not to turn his head to look at her, although he could feel she was watching him. Jaime heard the rumor that Oberyn was thinking about asking Brienne to be his date to prom, and that made his blood boil. He hated the thought of Oberyn Martell taking  _ his _ Brienne to prom. He wished he was able to ask her himself, he was almost sure she’d say yes without hesitation.

He had also thought a lot about his relationship with Cersei and what to do with it, and after going all over it over and over again, he was sure about three things: First, he didn’t love her the same way as before; second, he had to break up with her; and third, Cersei wouldn’t be happy about it. 

The weekend before prom, he decided it was time to talk to Cersei. He bought the plane tickets to Highgarden, round trip in the day, and on Saturday noon, he was in Highgarden, in a taxi, going to Cersei’s apartment building. The doorman let him in, after all, he knew him. He went to Cersei’s door and rang the bell. Big was his surprise when a fat, hairy man - who was wearing only boxers - opened the door. 

“Yes?” The man asked him.

“I’m sorry, I might have made a mistake… I’m looking for Cersei…” He muttered.

“Oh, you made no mistake. Who are you?” 

“Um… I’m his friend. Can I come in?” He asked. The guy gave him a suspicious look, but he let him in.

“Give me a second, I’ll ask her to come.” The man said. Jaime sat on the couch and waited for her. He didn’t understand shit. What the hell was going on there. 

“Jaime?” He heard Cersei say after a few minutes of waiting. Jaime turned his head to where she was standing. She was wearing a white robe. “What are you doing here?” she asked. He couldn’t answer because the man who opened the door was coming out of her bedroom, putting his sweater on. 

“See you later, babe.” He said as he kissed her.  _ What the fuck?  _ The guy left the apartment. Jaime waited a moment before speaking.

“What. The. Hell. Is. Going. On?” He asked her slowly.

“Jaime… I…” She started to talk, but he interrupted her.

“You know what? I don’t care. You made what I was coming to do way easier. We’re done, Cersei. Done.” He said, his voice was louder. He couldn’t believe it. 

“I only did it because you cheated on me first.” Said Cersei, very sure of herself.

“What are you talking about?” He asked her. “I hadn’t been anything but faithful to you since before we started dating. It doesn’t matter anymore, anyway.” Cersei was speechless. Jaime walked to the door, “I hope you have a good life, Cers.” He said before leaving the apartment. He felt as free as ever.

* * *

“_I traveled to break up with her, found out she was cheating on me, made things easier. You were right, I don’t love her, I haven't loved her in a long time now._” He texted his brother before getting on the plane.

* * *

On Sunday, instead of Jaime going to see Tyrion at the latter’s apartment, Tyrion went to Jaime’s.

“I can’t believe she cheated on you,” Tyrion said as a greeting once Jaime opened the door. He walked into the apartment and made himself at home. “Anyway, I’m proud of you for  ** _finally_ ** breaking up with her.”

“Thank you?” 

“Are you still doing that trip, right?”

“I still need to figure out some other things.” 

“Brienne,” Tyrion said.

“Brienne,” Jaime confirmed. “Speaking of her, could you get me the number of the admission guy from RKU?” 

“Sure I did,” he said, as he took a paper from his pocket with the guy’s number written on it.

“You know you could just have texted it to me, right?” Jaime told him as he saved the number on his phone.

“Yes, I know, captain genius. My phone was dead. Be glad I got you the number.”

“Thank you, Tyrion. Really.” 

“Anything for you, brother.”

* * *

Jaime had refused to use his last name to get anything, he had gotten out of that life many years ago, when he decided to become a teacher, and his father cut him out of his will. And really, the last thing Jaime wanted to do was to use his family name to set a meeting for Brienne at RKU, but the guy who answered the phone was being a jerk, and he thought that, for her, it wouldn’t hurt him to use the power of the Lannister name.

When he said the scary last name, the man at the other end of the line mumbled some stuff and asked him if he’d like to send him some of the things Brienne had written for them to read them and set a meeting. Jaime told him he had already sent three of Brienne’s writings. They hung up, and an hour later, the man called Jaime telling him a meeting will be set the day and time of Brienne’s convenience.

He hated using his family name to get things, but sometimes it had its perks.

* * *

He waited until Friday morning to tell Brienne about the interview. He found her with Daenerys and Missandei.

“I’m sorry girls, can I take Brienne from you for a moment?”

“Sure, Mr. L.” answered Daenerys. “See you later, Brie,” she took Missandei’s arm and walked away, leaving them alone to talk. He went to sit on a bench, he had been standing on his feet the whole morning, and he could use some sitting. He waited until Brienne was sitting right beside him.

“What do you want to talk about, Mr. Lannister?” 

“I got you a meeting with the admission guy from RKU.” He told her. Her beautiful blue eyes went wide.

“Y-you did what?” she was in shock, he could say. “R-RKU?”

“Yeah, RKU. I made some calls, apparently being part of the Lannister family has some perks, and I got him to look at your writing, and he agreed to meet with you.” He saw how her eyes got full of hope with every word he said.

“You really believe in me, don’t you?”  _ Why wouldn’t I? _ He asked himself. He had realized Brienne had some self-esteem issues, he was sure it was because some jerk’s (or jerks’) made her believe that nothing she did was good enough, and he hated it.  _ Why her? Why would someone want to hurt her? _

“Of course I do, Brie. You’re a great writer,”  _ and person, and everything _ he wanted to add, but he didn’t, “and someday you’ll be a great reporter. I know that.” Jaime hoped that it wouldn’t be that obvious the love that filled his words, he might love her, but she still was an underage girl. “You just have to find your story.” Her eyes filled with tears; she put her hand over his and squeezed a little.

“Thank you, Jaime.” She whispered, and he could feel his heart beating hard in his chest.

* * *

It was finally prom. He arrived at the party fifteen minutes earlier to make sure everything was okay. 

“Wow, Mr. L., you look nice in that,” Daario told him. Jaime was wearing a black tuxedo with a sapphire blue bow tie. 

“Thanks, Daario… Everything okay?” he asked him.

“Yeah, I just finished setting the equipment, and the sound levels are the easiest part of all… Music will be playing in five, promise.” Daario answered him while he set something in his console.

“Great, you’re the best.”

“Well, I’m the only decent DJ of the school, so of course I’m the best.” Daario joked.

About forty minutes later, most of the students were there. They were dancing and having fun with their friends. Jaime was having a good time with some of the other teachers who went to supervise the party, trying to guess the kid’s costumes. 

And then, he saw Brienne entering the room. She was wearing a beautiful blue dress that looked nice on her. It has some golden details on the chest. He found her divine. He kept looking at her by the corner of his eye, he knew she was staring at him, and he found it entirely pleasant. He couldn’t help but stare at her, too. He needed to see her, to see her eyes,  _ I need her _ , he thought. He smiled at her, not being able to do what he really wanted to do, which was going there and claim her as his. No, she was a student, most importantly, she was seventeen years old, and he was thirty. Good thing he was leaving next weekend for the rest of the semester. 

Another 30 minutes had gone by, and Daario lowered the music a little and ask him to go on stage. He had the envelope with the results of who would be Queen and King of the dance and their court. 

“Our 2019 prom court,” he announced, “And, the princesses are Miss Daenerys, Miss Missandei, and Miss Arianne.” He wasn’t surprised, it was quite obvious those three girls would win. He saw them as they went on stage to claim their bouquets of flowers. “And the princes are Mr. Robin Arrin, Mr. Trystane Martell, and Mr. Galladon… Mr. Galladon.” To be honest, he was surprised. The crowd cheered for the princes too. “Now, our prom King is… Mr. Oberyn Martell.” The crowd cheered louder than before as Oberyn went on stage to claim his crown. Jaime kept reading the paper with the results, “and our prom Queen is…” when he saw her name on the paper, his heart started beating a little faster, filled with pride. “Brienne Tarth.” He said, with a little more excitement than what he should. Brienne went on stage, and he crowned her and caressed her cheek, lightly. They stared at each other’s eyes for a moment, then he smiled at her and then continued speaking. “The Queen and the King will now have their first dance.” The words tasted bitter in his mouth. A song started to play, and he saw as Oberyn and Brienne went to the dance floor and danced to it. Little by little, some other couples joined them, dancing slowly. Before the last notes of the piece ended, Jaime got close to Brienne and Oberyn. 

“Mind if I cut in?” He asked Oberyn. 

“Not at all. See you later, Brie.” Oberyn responded and left them alone to dance.

“May I have the next dance, my lady?” He asked her, bowing ridiculously at her to then extend his hand for her to take it.

“Of course, my lord.” She said as he took his hand. So Close, by Jon McLaughlin, started to play. He grabbed her by her waist with his right hand while holding her right hand in his left. They danced slowly, as there was no one around them. 

“You make a beautiful Queen, Brienne.” He couldn’t help but say. They were very close, he could feel the heat of her skin. “Blue is a good color for you, it matches your eyes.” He saw how she blushed, and he loved it.

“You look handsome, too, Jaime.” She muttered.

“I’ve always hated wearing this stuff. I feel like I’m at my wedding or something.” He said without thinking.  _ Dammit. _

“At some point, you’ll be at your wedding. Waiting for Cersei in the altar.” She said, and she sounded… sad?

“I doubt it… We broke up last week. I mean, we were over for months now, I just made it official last week.” 

“You… you what?” 

“You have the most beautiful eyes I’ve ever seen, Brienne.” They were closer than before, their bodies brushing.  _ Damn, I love her. Dammit. I’m fucking in love with a teenager. _

“I-I have something to tell you.” She muttered, looking to her right. She took a deep breath. She was about to say something, but suddenly, she let him go.  _ What the f…? _ He looked to where Brienne was looking and saw Oberyn dancing with Margaery and behind them, Daenerys, Missandei, and Arianne holding an open can of dog’s food. They were going to throw it to Margaery. Brienne slapped Daenerys' hand, and the content of the can landed on Arianne and Missandei. Jaime had to reprime a laugh,  _ that’s my girl, _ he thought.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Brienne was really angry, and she was right to be. Missandei, Arianne, and Daenerys told her she ruined everything, that she was a loser and that she didn’t deserve to be prom queen. He was about to  intervene, but Brienne was quicker. 

“Let me tell you something,” she started. The whole room went silent as she took off her crown and throw it away. She did the same with the pin in her dress. “I don’t give a shit about being your stupid prom queen.” I’m twenty-three years old, for Gods’ sake.”  _ What? She’s what? What the fuck? _ “I’m an undercover reporter from King’s Landing Post, and I’ve been beating my brains out trying to impress you, people.”  _ She lied, she lied to me,  _ was all Jaime could think at that moment. He needed air.  _ What the fuck is going on? _

He went outside and sat on the ground behind a flowerbed. He wasn’t sure how he felt.  _ She’s not seventeen, then… What I feel about her is not wrong. I can… I can ask her out, right? But… she lied. Why? The fuck is this shit? _ He heard footsteps approaching him and recognized them as Brienne’s. He also heard another pair of steps accompanied by a male’s voice.

“What the hell happened in there? We lost the connection. Please tell me you have something on Lannister.”  _ Something on me? She was writing about me? I… What?  _ Jaime felt how his heart broke into a thousand pieces. “Sandor is going nuts, he’s calling me every five minutes.”

“I’ve told you I was not going to write about Jaime,” Brienne said. That didn’t make him feel any better. Jaime stood up and walked to where they were. The man who was with Brienne turned around, muttered something that Jaime didn’t understand, and left.

“You were writing about me?” He didn’t want to sound so hurt, but that’s how he fucking felt in that fucking moment. He knew that all the pain he was feeling at that very moment was showing in his eyes. 

“No. I couldn’t, and I didn’t want to.” That didn’t make it better, though. “I think I owe you an apology. I mean… this wasn’t supposed to be like this. I wasn’t supposed to fall…” even though she hesitated, he knew what she meant. She wasn’t supposed to fall in love with him, just like he wasn’t supposed to fall in love with her, as well. “Anyway, it wasn’t even my idea to write about you. And… I was hoping that you’d understand me…” 

That was it. He couldn’t take it anymore. He loved her, and the fact that she was twenty-three should have made him happy, but… she lied, she was going to write about him, and he was sure that it would be some nasty thing about him. He was hurt, and he needed his space more than ever.

“Understand what? That you were writing a story about me?” He was shouting a little. “What the fuck?! Maybe I should be relieved that I’m allowed to feel all I feel about you. But I just… I can’t understand. I can’t understand all the lying. Everything you said was a lie.” His chest started to hurt. “I gotta go, Brienne.” He found the strength to walk away from her.

* * *

“Look at the bright side. She’s an adult, so you can be with her now.” Tyrion told him, watching his brother drinking straight from the bottle of vodka.

“What bright side, Tyrion? She lied to me. She just used me.”

Tyrion rolled his eyes, he knew that that was going to be a long night, and when he usually enjoyed getting wasted, he didn’t enjoy getting wasted with someone who was crying because of a broken heart.


	8. Chapter 8

She had really fucked this up, hadn’t she? She went back to her home and locked herself in her room. Galladon and Sansa had been out her door asking her to let them in for half an hour, but she hadn’t. She felt stupid, she felt like she had become all she hated the most, a liar. She hated herself. She had hurt the person she loved, the person that somehow felt  _ something  _ for her. She had screwed her brother's chance to play baseball once again. All the guilt she felt was killing her from the inside out, but after an hour or so of feeling sorry for herself, she realized what she had to do. She went downstairs. Sansa, luckily, hadn’t left.

“I’m so, so, so, sorry.” She told Galladon. “I screwed it for you, you were doing so good in the team…”

“Do you think I care about the team, Brie?” Said his brother, as he hugged her. “I just went back to school to help you, you’re the most important thing to me.” Brienne hugged him back, tight. She felt like she didn’t deserve a brother like Galladon. 

“We were worried about you.” Said Sansa, hugging her too. “It was very brave what you did in there.”

“It was stupid. I got Sandor, and I fired. He’s gonna kill me.”

“Not if we think about a super interesting story to give Davos by tomorrow morning.” Said Sansa, as it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“I have nothing, not even a hint of a story.”

“But you do. You have yours.” Said as a matter of fact. “I heard Sandor told you that a story to be perfect, it has to have sex scandals, broken hearts, bribery, drugs. But he forgot something essential: love.” Brienne knew Sansa was right. “Write about your first experience in high school, write about this new one. Write about Hyle and about Jaime. Do something worthy of a rom-com, do something crazy.” Brienne felt as her spirits grew, she had an idea, the craziest idea of them all, and it will probably make her look even fooler than what she already felt, but… she had nothing to lose.

* * *

The following morning she went to the office, she hadn’t slept because she spent the entire night writing. Sandor had called her in, he was pissed.

“Davos is going to fire us, you know that?” Sandor’s voice was oddly calm.

“No, he’s not,” Brienne said, totally confident.

“He’s not?” Sandor looked at her as she had just lost her mind. “Brienne, you blew up your cover, and you didn’t even have a fucking story. He is going to fire us.”

“But, I do have a story.” She said as she gave him the pages she had wrote. “Give this to Davos, he’ll like it. Trust me. But give me until Monday morning, I have to arrange something first.”

* * *

On Monday morning, she went to school once again. Being careful enough not to cross paths with Jaime, she went straight to the locker room, where was Coach Mormont’s office.

“Are you Jorah Mormont, coach of the baseball team?” the man nodded, “Hi, I’m Brienne Tarth from the King’s Landing Post. What would you do if I can guarantee you that every single reporter of King’s Landing will cover your game?”

“Anything.”

“Great, because I have two little favors I have to ask you.”

Once her meeting with Coach Mormont was over, Brienne texted Sandor, “All done, show Davos the story.”

* * *

Brienne wasn’t wrong. Davos did love it. He said it was raw, it was direct, it was perfect, and he was a man hard to impress. He wanted it published as soon as possible.

* * *

** _Second Chances_ **

_ By Brienne Tarth. _

_ What would you do if you had the chance to go back to your senior year in high school? Would you take it? What would you do differently? My first experience there wasn't pleasant. Every single student mocked me because I wasn’t (and I’m not) pretty; I’m very tall and awkward. I have broad shoulders. My lips are swollen, my nose had been broken once, my skin is fully covered in freckles. I blush at absolutely everything, and I can’t even go under the sun for more than fifteen minutes (even wearing  _ _ SPF 45) because I end up all red _ _ . As I said, I’m not pretty, not even close. _

_ When I was in high school, the other students used to call me Brienne the Beauty and some other names that I don’t even remember. I was in love with this one guy, Hyle, who in my senior year, asked me to go to prom with him, and it felt like a dream came true. The only thing was… it was just part of a cruel joke. Once again, people were making fun of me. The only two people who had made my first experience in high school bearable were my brother and my best friend, Galladon and Sansa. Yes, it is embarrassing, but I have to share this part of my past for you to understand what comes next. _

_ Two months ago, I had the chance to go back to high school, and I took it without even thinking about it. I was asked by my boss to do undercover research to find out about nowadays teenagers. At first, I thought I was going to finally make my oh-so-dreamt debut as a reporter, that the piece I’d write would be amazing and all of that, but what really happened was that I ended up finding myself.  _

_ My second first day was awful. Some people made me know how ugly I was without even thinking about how I’d feel. Their words about how I look didn’t bother me, I know how I look, and I made my peace with that a long, long time ago. And if they’d hut me, I wouldn’t blame them, they’re kids, after all, they just don’t think before acting. What bothered me was the fact that I had let my hopes rise about this “second chance” I was given, when, in fact, even if the people had changed, the spirit remains. The essence of who I am hadn’t changed in the last five years, and the essence of high school hadn’t changed either. _

_ And it is not something bad. There will always be that one guy, that with his confidence will make you think that he’s perfect, that one guy that without him, high school wouldn’t have been the same. Those girls that, even twenty years later, they’ll look as beautiful as always. There'll always be the teacher who does things her own way. The smart kids, which in them, I found a place where I could be myself. Those groups will always be the same, five years ago, now, and fifteen years in the future. And I am glad I learned this.  _

_ On this second chance at high school I got to do a lot of things I hadn’t done on my first high school experience, as going to prom, going to the mall with a group of friends, being part of a group, feeling accepted, being asked what prom theme would be good, and finding love. Silly things like that, but that for me actually meant the world.  _

_ There’s only one thing I regret about all of this. In this unexpected way of self-discovery, I hurt one teacher, one person. I know this article won’t make up for what I’ve done to you, but it is a start. I am so sorry. And I think I am in love with you, you’re my Knight in golden armor. Here’s my proposal. I’ll be at the state championship baseball game where the school’s team is playing for the title. I’ll be standing in the pitcher’s mound, five minutes before the game starts. If this man accepts my apology, I ask him to come to kiss me, for my first real kiss. _

* * *

He felt like if Brienne had ripped his heart out of his chest and squeezed it until its death. How could she have lied? He felt beyond betrayed.

Luckily he was leaving the following weekend, all he had to do was to focus the entire week in packing his stuff and giving all the valuables to Tyrion (in case someone breaks into his apartment to steal). 

What he didn’t expect was to miss her so badly. Even though she lied to him and used him, he missed her. He missed her laugh, the way she made him feel. He missed her voice. He missed her reading her essays and stories, her passion. He missed her eyes, the way she looked at him as if he was the most fantastic human being in the entire world. He missed her badly.  _ Dammit. Just focus on your laundry, in packing. Forget her. _

He had managed to keep his mind somewhere far away from Brienne most of the time. But when he went to sleep, every night he dreamt of blue eyes and a sweet voice reading love stories. 

He was doing the last load of laundry on Friday afternoon when his phone rang.  _ Tyrion. _

“Hi, what’s up?” He asked while starting the machine.

“ _ Have you read yesterday’s paper? _ ”

“Didn’t have time, why?”

“ _ Your Brienne published her story. _ ”

“I don’t care. I don’t want to read it. And not  _ my  _ Brienne” He said kind of angry that she had, after all, written a story about him.

“ _ I think you may want to read it _ .” 

“What does it say about me?”

“ _ So much for you not caring. Anyway, I won’t spoil it. Just open the link I sent you. _ ” Then he hung up. He opened the link his brother had sent him and what he found was something entirely different from what he was expecting

_ “  _ _ [...]  _ _ I’ll be standing in the pitcher’s mound, five minutes before the game starts. If this man accepts my apology, I ask him to come to kiss me, for my first real kiss.” _

Jaime read the article once, twice, three times. Brienne Tarth loved him.  _ Him.  _ And she had confessed it to the whole city and beyond. He wasn’t sure how had he went from damn pissed to damn happy in just ten minutes. Was it even possible? Anyway, that was all he needed to grab his keys to go for her. Twenty minutes until the game starts, and that’s the time he needed to get there.  _ Dammit. _

* * *

There was one minute left for Jaime to come and kiss her. She couldn’t hear anything but her heart beating in her ears. 

_41 seconds._

She took long deep breaths, in an attempt to soothe herself. In and out, in and out. All the people in the crowd kept shouting words of encouragement.

_15 seconds._

All the people started to shout the countdown. Margaery seemed to be even more anxious and nervous than herself. 

_5 seconds._

Brienne took two more deep breaths. He wasn’t going to come. She knew it.

_3… 2… 1…_

And he didn’t come. The crowd remained silent. They all wanted a happy ending. Brienne closed her eyes, keeping her tears in her eyes, where they belong. 

* * *

He drove as fast as he could, but the traffic was terrible.  _ I won’t make it, dammit, dammit, dammit. _ He was starting to get impatient. He needed to get to the baseball field to claim his future. The simple thought of Brienne, alone, waiting for him made his heartache. He  _ needed _ to get there as fast as possible.  _ Seriously? All these people are going to the fucking game?  _ When he finally reached the baseball field, he heard the ring of the time out.  _ Dammit. _ He ran to the field as fast as he could. Although the clock marked 00:00, Brienne was still standing there.  _ Yes.  _ He thought. He ran to her.

* * *

“Brienne!” Brienne heard Margaery shout. She opened her eyes and saw Margaery pointing at the entrance of the field. Jaime was standing there, as handsome as ever. He was panting. He smiled at her as he got closer. Once he was in front of her, mere centimeters keeping them apart, he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her even closer. She put her arms around his neck, feeling at home.

“I’m sorry I’m late, my lady. Traffic was awful.” He said. He pressed his lips against hers. That was it, that was her first kiss, given by the man she loved. His lips felt smooth on hers, sweet. She didn’t know what to do, her heart started to beat faster and faster. Jaime’s lips parted a little, and his tongue brushed her lower lip. Clumsily, she opened her mouth, letting him deepen the kiss. His arms tightened around her waist. A few moments later, they parted, gasping for air.

“I thought you weren’t coming,” she said, smiling at him.

“Why wouldn’t I? I love you, Brienne Tarth,” he said. He looked at her and smiled. She had never been looked that way before, with such love and intensity, like the mere fact of being a few centimeters apart could actually be physically painful. “By the way, to me, you’re not pretty… you’re beautiful,” He added before kissing her again.

* * *

“Brienne!” Someone in the crowd shouted, he thought it was Margaery, but to be honest, he didn’t give a shit. He was totally focused on Brienne, who then was looking at him. He smiled at her. Only centimeters apart from each other. He took her by her waist and pulled her even closer. She put her arms around his neck.  _ This. This is how I want to spend the rest of my life. _

“I’m sorry I’m late, my lady. Traffic was awful.” He pressed his lips against her without further comments. She stood still for a moment, and to give her some assurance, he parted his lips a little and brushed the tip of his tongue on her lips. She opened her lips a little, and that was all the invitation he needed to kiss her properly. If it were for him, he would keep kissing her until the next millennia, but the need for air was pressing, too, so they parted a little, gasping for air.

“I thought you weren’t coming.” She told him with a shy smile on her face. Her lips were twice their size, they were swollen and very red, and he was happy he made them look that way, but he felt guilty too. He had made her think he didn’t love her.  _ There’s no way I don’t love her _ .

“Why wouldn’t I? I love you, Brienne Tarth.” He told her, looking at her loveling, hoping for her to see in his eyes all the love he felt for her. “By the way, to me, you’re not pretty… you’re beautiful.” He told her before kissing her again.

* * *

Sandor and Sansa were sitting next to each other, watching Brienne and Jaime kissing their faces off on the pitcher’s mound. Much to Sansa’s surprise, Sandor had one tiny little tear rolling down his cheek. She stared at him for a moment before stealing him one kiss. It was just a crush on the lips, but that was enough for him to grab her face and kiss her properly.

_ Dammit, I really like this guy _ , Sansa thought as she kissed him back.

* * *

“Let’s get the hell out of here, love,” Jaime said and pulled her out of the field. Brienne couldn’t stop smiling. She couldn’t believe he had gone, that he had kissed her. Almost three months ago, she thought that her prince charming wouldn’t come to claim her, simply because she hadn’t believed that such a man existed, she was so used to men not looking past her looks, she was so used to being mocked by her looks.

She was used to people like Hyle Hunt and Ellaria Sand.

And after lots of time and lots of therapy, she was finally okay with that. She knew the way she looked, and she knew most people couldn’t see beyond that, and while at first, she got angry at them, right then she could only pity them; if they couldn’t see beyond someone’s looks, then they weren’t worth her time, after all, she was okay with herself, she knew she was a good person, intelligent, kind, loyal, brave, she knew that the people who matter to her loved her, and she was sure she didn’t need any more than that.

She certainly had never imagined that a man like Jaime Lannister, smart, handsome, attractive, appealing, kind, among many other things, could ever be interested in her. She had never imagined that a man like him would be attracted to her. She had never imagined that Jaime Lannister would love her. And she had never dreamt, not even in her wildest dreams, to be called beautiful by him, and what was more, she actually believed him. She felt like she could touch the sky with her bare hands.

Brienne let Jaime led her to his car. He kissed her again after opening the passenger door. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry, it got a little bit repetitive at the end.   
I'll probably update the last chapter in two weeks because I genuinely need to study for the coming exams :'c  
I hope you liked it ♥♥♥


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